Metroid Prime Hunters: The War
by tracefan
Summary: Takes place after my trilogy, so read that first. A series of mysterious communications starts a war between the Galactic Federation, the Kriken Empire, and the Space Pirates.
1. The Messages

**Hello, I'm back again! This is another MPH fic, which takes place after my trilogy and uses the surviving OCs from there, so I advise you read the trilogy first. Unfortunately, I won't update as fast as normal (originally 1 or 2 a day), but I'll still try to do it fast. Although I seem to get more reviews after a longer period of delay...If you have questions or comments about the trilogy or this fic, PM me if it's not a review. I answer reviews and PMs quite quickly. I talk too much, so here's the story.**

The Kriken Empire was considered by many to be the strongest Empire in the history of the universe, and a power second only to the Galactic Federation. Although many krikens believed that they could defeat the Federation, the Emperor and Overlords refused to attempt an invasion that would trigger a war of such magnitude. Some civilizations feared not only their own takeover by the krikens, but also a massive war that would destroy the fragile balance the Federation struggled to uphold. Space Pirates was another issue, as they were terrorists that the Federation either wasn't bothered to deal with, or was unable to do anything. The krikens and Space Pirates had an unspoken agreement to leave the other to its ways, although several kriken planets eagerly hoped for a battle between them for the coveted title of "most feared race", of which the krikens had second place.

Aboard a large kriken flagship, one of the Overlords stood at the bridge, responding to the summons by the communications official.

"Yes?" the Overlord said sharply. He wore a black cloak that concealed his face, but a red eyes gleamed from beneath the cloak.

"Better listen to this," the officer said, handing the Overlord a recording of the message. The Overlord's eye narrowed as he played the message. Ordinarily, a holographic image of the sender would appear, so the lack of it showed the sender didn't want to be known.

_"To the Kriken Empire, preferably someone with a decent rank. I have discovered a Federation scheme to attack a Kriken planet. I have enclosed the coordinates. The attack will occur within a few days."_ the communication went out. The Overlord pondered the message. Without knowledge of the sender, the communication could be called 'unreliable'. However, it sounded sincere, but that was what concerned the Overlord the most. Who would help the Kriken Empire? It would have to be an enemy of the Federation...the Overlord sighed.

"I need a direct link to the coordinates. The planet there must be warned. Also, send a call to the Emperor. I will need to discuss this with him..." the Overlord said wearily.

At a Federation base, Commander Grater turned as an officer approached him.

"Yes? What is it?" Grater barked, the officer wincing. Grater was not known for having developed any form of a whisper, which is why Samus Aran seemed amused by causing his blood pressure to rise.

"Urgent communication, Commander!" the officer reported. Grater scowled and followed the official to the communications room.

"Let's hear this message..." Grater yelled. He was handed a recording and played it. The first thing he noticed was the lack of a holographic image, so it was anonymous.

_"To a high-ranked Federation officer, the Kriken Empire plans to attack a Federation controlled system and take it over. Enclosed are the coordinates, and the attack will occur in a matter of a few days."_ the communication stopped and Grater growled loudly.

"Damn Krikens...always causing some form of mischief! Contact the admiral...he'll need to hear about this one..." Grater barked. The officers hastened to obey.

Inside a Space Pirate mothership, The Pirate Council stared at a recording of a communication received earlier.

_"The Kriken Empire intends to break any neutrality agreement and attack you settlements. The Galactic Federation will also be attacking, but will not be allied with the Empire. This will happen in a few days, and the coordinates are enclosed."_ The communication shut off. The council seemed coldly unconcerned.

"We will send an army led by reinstated General Weavel to take out the threats to our settlements. If the Kriken Empire and Galactic Federation want a war, we will give it to them! And destroy them!" There was a great deal of excitement following the announcement and several Space Pirates hurried to prepare.


	2. Notice

**Finally got around to continuing, I was busy. Future reference: I rarely update on weekends, contrary to what would be normal. Thanks for the review already. Never received one so early in a fic. Seriously though, read the trilogy first, as this takes place after the events of the trilogy, and involves characters from them, as well as possible references to it. I'm writing under the assumption that you know what happened in the trilogy. On to business then. Also, it's creepy (but awesome) to have 2 people favorite a story that barely started, so I must have fans.**

Samus was startled from her thoughts by a message received by her computer. She answered and immediately scowled. It was from Commander Grater, no doubt with some pointless mission that she had to do immediately.

"Yes?" she asked and Grater's image looked worried.

"The Kriken Empire is planning to attack." he said loudly. Samus was stunned, to say the least.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Frankly, no, but we received a warning, so we're taking precautions!" Grater roared in reply.

"So, I need to get involved in a potential war?" Samus asked coldly.

"Kind of, yeah!" Grater barked.

"I do not want to be doing this..." Samus muttered as she downloaded the coordinates to her navigation systems. It appeared that she would be having a rough assignment. As used to she was to violence from battle, wars were nasty, especially with the Kriken Empire involved.

Weavel smiled as he stood in front of the Space Pirate Council. After the events at Abyss, he had been repromoted to General with supreme status as the head of the war effort. Against the Federation and the Krikens, two parties he despised with a passion. It was all too amusing to create some real carnage at last. No more righteous justice, no more uncertainy in battle. He would have an entire Space Pirate Army at his disposal, and maybe destroy Samus as well.

Sylux frowned as he studied the transmission he had intercepted. It didn't make sense. Why would the Federation start a war with the Kriken Empire? It was rather abrupt...Sylux smirked, stroking the barrel of his Shock Coil. What bettr opportunity to create some real mayhem against the accursed Galactic Federation. Although he disliked using their technology, it was also amusing to use the technology against them. He downloaded the stolen coordinates into the computer of the Delano 8 and the ship moved to the new destination. Sylux would finally accomplish his goal of vengeance against the Federation and Samus.

Noxus puzzled over this development. Why was the Kriken Empire going to war with the Federation? The Empire wasn't so reckless as to attack the Federation. More suspicious was the message itself. Who had sent it? Interestingly, it was clearly genuine as the Kriken army was preparing for battle as well.

"Spire? What are you doing around here?" Noxus suddenly asked, speaking through his communication system to the Diamont. Spire's image grinned.

"The Space Pirates have been pursuing me for a while, and I intercepted a transmission about battling the Kriken Empire, so I decided to help." Noxus pondered this.

"Wait...you're helping the Space Pirates battle the Kriken Empire? Are you insane?" Noxus yelled.

"Not really..." Spire said, startled by the reaction.

"It's about the Diamonts' fate, right?" Noxus murmured.

"No, I'd be after the venom filth for that. He's vanished anyway." Spire grumbled.

"Spire...Drek's trying to kill you, why would you track him?" Noxus said reasonably.

"Catch him off-guard?" Spire wondered. Noxus sighed.

"At least help the Federation against the Krikens, not the pirates!" Noxus said.

"Why?" Spire asked, puzzled.

"Didn't you know? The krikens declared war on the Federation!" Noxus shouted. Spire shrugged and then nodded.

"Let's go take out the krikens then!" Spire said determined.

Kanden narrowed his eyes. Noxus and Spire were together again? After tracking Spire for a week or so, he confirmed a communication with the Vhozon, but hadn't managed to intercept it. He tapped a button.

"Hey, Weavel...the Diamont and Vhozon are allied again." he hissed into the communications. Weavel's image appeared.

"Excellent...with them helping the Federation, the kriken forces will target them before us. Stay with them, but don't be seen. Surprise attacks are always better!" Weavel replied evilly. Kanden nodded and smiled. His alliance with the Space Pirates would go unnoticed, and before anyone guessed, the battle would have begun!

Trace stared in awe at the intercepted transmission. The Empire was attacking the Federation? It hardly seemed possible. Drek had confirmed the Empire had no intent to do so less than a month ago. Trace hurried to send a message of his own. The image of a venom green kriken appeared on his display, the venom kriken's emerald green eye gleamed.

"Ah, Trace. Later than I expected you to contact me. What's up bro?" Drek asked. Trace smiled.

"How soon did you expect me to call?" Trace wondered.

"5 minutes after we left Abyss. You seem concerned. What is it?" Drek asked, in slight concern.

"I intercepted this message..." Trace sent a copy of the message and Drek paused as he studied it.

"How odd..." Drek murmured.

"No idea?" Trace asked desperately.

"It makes no sense, there's no strategy to this invasion. Who sent this anyway? It could be a prank, but the coordinates are genuine...so, want to help out?" Drek asked suddenly.

"I can't contact krikens while exiled!" Trace replied.

"I lost some influence, but I'm sure the Empire wouldn't object to the 2 most skilled krikens to join their side, even if one is a hopeless exile for the last year or so." Drek teased. Trace rolled his eye and nodded.

"That's better, bro." Drek smirked and the transmission disconnected.

Unknown to Trace, his message had been intercepted as well. A red kriken with a yellow eye alight with malice scowled as he examined the message.

"The two most skilled? So I'm excluded, even though I'm the second best?" the kriken hissed bitterly. True, Trace had defeated him several times, but Trace wasn't a prodigy, alike himself. Servu scowled as he downloaded the coordinates. The message's sender was insignificant. The truth was obvious. The Empire and the Federation was a war waiting to happen, and someone got impatient.

Far away, a lone figure shuffled a strange deck of cards. The figure wore a hood covering its face. The figure placed some cards on the table and flipped one, examining the picture.

"The war is about to begin...it seems as if the hunters are all there." The figure muttered. He glanced at another card.

"It seems the efforts will not be for vain, but great turmoil shall still come, despite all measures to prevent it." the figure said with a calm smile, shuffling the cards again and placing the tarot deck aside.

"Fate is an unusual force, for knowledge of its goals allows one to change the path." the figure said mysteriously.

**This chapter's done. A bt more mysterious than suspense, unlike my previous fics.**


	3. Terror Assault

Grater stood at the bridge on one of the Federation Battleships. They intended to beat the krikens to the destination and launch an attack before the krikens could do the same. What they were unware of was the small spacecraft following them. Grater grunted loudly in annoyance. The Federation admiral had agreed to attack the kriken forces, knowing the possible outcome of defeat.

If the message was genuine, and the Admiral was confident it was, despite the shady source, the Kriken Empire would attack anyway, and Federation should take the initiative. Hundreds of troops had been gathered, and a war was definitely going to take place. Grater knew that the first series of battles would be above the planet, the rest probably a ground battle. The planet in question was vital to the Federation Army, and they could not risk krikens taking control of such a large military power.

The massive battleship shook suddenly, and a red light flashed.

"What the hell!?" Grater roared, staring at the radar wildly.

"Enemy ship detected, analysis concludes it to be similar to a Federation prototype, but not the same. Prototype data retrieved. Delano 7, status: STOLEN. Thief identified as Hunter Sylux. Probability of assailant, 99 percent." a computer report said rapidly. Grater yelled in rage.

"Prepare for counterattack. It's Sylux!" Officers hastened to the weapon stations, some smaller gunships launched to battle the adversary. Grater watched the battle unfold.

Sylux smirked as he fired upon the Federation Battleship. It was time for a small taste of vengeance. He aimed his ship's plasma cannons at the battleship and fired, the bolts hitting perfectly. The reaction was immediate. The battleship turrets aimed at his ship and smaller fighter crafts were launched moments later. Sylux smiled to himself as he dodged the hail of weapon fire being launched at his Delano 8. He aimed the Delano's cannon at one of the fighter crafts and fired.

Bursts of plasma hit the opposing craft, which exploded quickly. Sylux barrel rolled to the side to dodge the battleship's large cannons, which fortunately destroyed a fighter craft that had tried to sneak behind him. Sylux laughed maliciously, concentrating his fire at the the battleship's turrets, most of which were firing large plasma blasts at him, although they were incredibly ineffective due to the small size and maneuverability of the Delano 8. Sylux activated his missile cannons, locking on to the battleship's bridge.

"Good riddance!" Sylux sneered and fired. Missiles launched towards the bridge, Sylux's cruel smile widening as the missile approached the bridge. A massive explosion rocked the battleship, and a second explosion tore the ship apart. The battleship was crippled, all opposing fighters vaporized. Sylux chuckled malevolently and then gasped in amazement. A laser bolt struck the Delano from the battleship, spinning his ship wildly. He pulled out of the spin, firing another missile into the ruins of the battleship, grinning as the last chunk of the ship exploded. There was no remaining sign of the battleship, and Sylux smiled.

"One down..." he hissed quietly and flew away from the ruins, pleased with the blow he struck upon the Federation he despised.

Commander Grater groaned as he awoke.

"Damn that terrorist..." he muttered loudly. It had been chaos aboard the attacked battleship, but the officers had hurried him to an escape pod and launched it, seconds before the first missile struck. Some officers had taken other pods, as other hurried to try to fight Sylux. Grater knew of Sylux all too well. Many troops and officers had been killed in raids of Federation bases. No one could seem to stop him, except Samus. Ever since Sylux had somehow updated his ship, he had been stronger than ever.

Grater knew that the terrorist had a secret agenda for attacking the Federation in the past, but he didn't understand how Sylux knew where a Federation battleship was. It had been an ambush. Had the Krikens sent him? No, Sylux was a loner, preferring to do things his way. Had Sylux sent the message? No, that couldn't work either. Why would Sylux warn the Federation of a phony attack, when he could just attack the base himself, doing more damage. He activated the escape pod distress signal, and hoped for the best.

**This chapter was shorter than expected, but the next ones are longer**


	4. First Contact

A small army of kriken fighters flew swiftly, but warily towards the coordinates, followed by a battleship. Aboard the battleship, the kriken Overlord smiled sinisterly. He had, of course, received authorization from the Emperor to continue the attack. The Emperor himself had also planned to take part in the attacks as well, which was a less intelligent idea. The fall of the Emperor could lead to a power struggle in the Empire, as the candidates for the next Emperor were selected.

The Overlord kept his eye on the radar, wary of surprise attacks. No one would escape the carnage created from such a foolish attack. Suddenly, the radar beeped and the Overlord glanced at it.

"Sir, Space Pirate ships approaching!" one officer reported. The Overlord scowled. Accursed Space Pirates, no doubt planning an assault.

"Open fire." The Overlord said dismissively. Plasma bursts erupted from the battleship's cannons, striking some of the opposing crafts, blowing them to bits in balls of fire. Taking the cue, the kriken fighters began their attack upon the enemy crafts as well, which returned fire just as suddenly as the attack began. Several kriken ships exploded, some unfortunately colliding while dodging Space Pirate fire.

"Sir!" one officer yelled, pointing in the distance.

"Figures..." the Overlord muttered as a Space Pirate mothership appeared in view. It was larger and more heavily armed than the kriken battleship, and no doubt help hundreds of Space Pirate fighters aboard. As this thought processed, about 100 more pirate fighters emerged from the gigantic mothership. The Overlord smiled slightly, confusing the officers.

"Arm the laser. They made a mistake by challenging the Empire!" the Overlord sneered gleefully. The officers scattered to busy themselves with various controls.

Meanwhile, the kriken fighters continued their battle with the Space Pirate ships, attempting to dodge the hail of weapon fire falling about them. The Space Pirates outnumbered the krikens by a fair amount, and the mothership continued launching more fighters whenever the krikens were getting the upper hand. Unlike the kriken army, the Space Pirates knew the danger of too many ships in one area. Weavel stood on the bridge of the mothership, grinning as he watched the krikens battle. A message popped up, and Weavel replied.

"Yes, Kanden?" Weavel hissed.

"Need a hand?" Kanden asked, his bug like face alight with malice. Weavel smirked.

"I think we have the battle covered. Maybe later!" Weave replied. Suddenly, he noticed two ships appear from behind, weapons firing upon the Space Pirate crafts.

"What?" Weavel murmured, tapping a few keys.

"Ships identified. Kriken Sniper and Kriken Force III. Owners determined to be Trace and Drek. Enemies." Weavel glared at the report. So the infamous krikens dared interfere? He'd show them why he was made General again. He hastily typed some commands, and a laser turret targeted the Kriken Force III.

"Locked on. Fire when ready!" the computer reported. Weavel didnt hesitate, pressing the fire button. Beams of intense energy fired from the mothership's turret, but the target rolled away at the last second, causing Weavel to scowl. How unfortunate, they were now out of range of a targeted cannon burst, but the battle was still in their favor. Even with Trace and Drek, the krikens were no match for the Space Pirates!

Trace smirked as he effortlessly dodged random shots from Space Pirate ships, his superb reflexes allowing him to flip and roll to dodge more concentrated fire, his own weapons blasting the Space Pirate ships, grinning as they exploded into fireballs. Drek's Kriken Force III was doing similar moves, but the shots were flashier and more showy, which made Trace smile. Drek was such a show-off in battle, which was reinforced by his incredible abilities.

Unlike Servu, Drek was more focused on success than looking cool, although he easily accomplished both. After several minutes of heavy battling, suddenly an enormous green laser fired from the kriken battleship, shredding a large group of the Space Pirate fighters. There was an abrupt lack of firing as everyone in the vicinity seemed too shocked by the laser.

Weavel gaped as a huge green laser fired from the distance, taking a large portion of the attack force.

"General, what should we do? Retreat or continue?" A pirate commader asked desperately.

"Retreat." Weavel said promptly, still recovering from the shock.

"Yes, General!" the commander replied and the communication ceased.

"This isn't over, bugs!" Weavel snarled, turning away as the Space Pirate fighters retreated to the mothership, which had changed course to retreat.

"They're retreating!" Drek said abruptly and Trace nodded, grinning slightly. Whatever weapon the kriken battleship had used seemed to have forced the Space Pirate forces back. Suddenly, Trace received a transmission from the kriken Overlord and froze in horror.

"Hello, exile." the Overlord whispered coldly.

"Um...hi?" Trace responded nervously. The Overlord smirked.

"Care to join our efforts?" he hissed.

"That's sort of why I'm here..." Trace replied.

"Good. You and Drek are the two most talented krikens. Your help might be enough to redeem your failures!" the Overlord added. Trace studied the blue kriken for a moment and nodded, ending the communication.

Nearby, Servu scowled furiously. His yellow eye gleamed in fury.

"It appears as if Trace might get away with his failures! I'll do whatever is needed to prevent that!" he muttered and suddenly a message appeared. Servu frowned and answered. A cloaked figure's image appeared, and Servu flinched.

"Hello, Servu...are you ready to accomplish your goal?" the figure asked. Servu was startled.

"Who are you?" Servu hissed.

"We should meet face to face. The Destiny Station is where I am. Meet me there in 1 hour." the transmission ended and Servu puzzled over this.

"What harm could it do? He might be able to assist me..." Servu mused, entering his destination before relaxing. It was time to see what the figure had to offer...


	5. Servu's Encounter

**I'm speeding up the plot a bit, partially to make up for slow update speed.**

Servu piloted his Kriken Force II, the predecessor of Drek's ship, to the Destiny Space Station. Curious how this station was thought to be abandoned. All the more reason to use it, he thought, landing in the station's docking bay. He exitted his ship warily, aiming his Imperialist cautiously. The place seemed way too deserted. He walked through the first hallway and reached a small chamber.

"Hello?!" Servu yelled, still worried about a trap.

"No trap, Servu. Go straight." a calm voice said, seeming to come from all around. Servu scowled and continued through the next room and saw it to be almost office-like, but with a strange aura in the room. It reeked of mystery. At a table, a cloaked figure calmly shuffled a strange deck of cards.

"Who are you?" Servu demanded. The figure glanced at him and smiled eerily. Servu stared at the figure carefully and caught a glimpse of a single red eye.

"You're a kriken, aren't you?" Servu whispered. The figure nodded and lowered the hood. Servu took one look and snickered sinisterly. The reason why was apparent. The kriken was yellow, which was typically a very rare color for a male kriken. The yellow male kriken waited for Servu to stop laughing.

"I assume you recognize me?" the kriken asked calmly. Servu paused, startled. Why wasn't there an angry response? Hell, Servu basically mocked the kriken just by looking at him.

"Actually...not really. Should I?" Servu asked. The figure smiled eerily and laid a card on the table.

"Destiny works in strange ways, Servu. Let me give you a demonstration. The card I laid was the Skeptic, which represents you. Now, let's see what destiny has in store." the kriken laid another card and smiled again.

"Interesting. The Eternal Shield card is upside down, symbolizing the removal of defenses, therefore symbolizing trust." the kriken chuckled and reshuffled the deck. Servu had a sudden thrill of understanding.

"Trek?" Servu hissed.

"Indeed. Although our past wasn't very pleasant, at least your memory is." the yellow kriken said calmly.

"Well, you are the only male yellow kriken in the training camp, and you're the only dork I know of with all your little destiny junk!" Servu snarled. Trek smirked eerily, which was really starting to creep Servu out.

"I'd be offended, but let's face it, you're the skeptic." Trek said. Trek picked a random tarot card from the deck without looking and showed it to Servu. Servu studied it for a second.

"The Skeptic card is destined to reveal itself to you, Servu. It represents your soul. As is this..." Trek picked another random card. "The Shadow. It represents a great darkness, that has been held down. The final card will tell what is the cause of the darkness, and it's this one: The Black Kriken. It symbolizes a person of great status, even one that is ill-deserved status." Trek replied.

"This is a load of garbage!" Servu snarled.

"Oh?" Trek asked calmly.

"You're making this all up!" Servu shouted, aggravated by Trek's unceasing calmness.

"All I did was design the cards. Fate still chooses what is chosen! Everything in existence is predetermined." Trek said emotionlessly. Servu stared at Trek with a mixture of confusion and amazement.

"Didn't these speeches get you insulted enough in training camp?" Servu finally asked.

"Yes, but destiny can be changed based on events of the past..." Trek began, but Servu interrupted.

"Yo, Destiny Freak, if everything is destined, how can anything be changed?" Servu mocked. Trek, to Servu's alarm, laughed, which was just as chilling as his eerie grin.

"Knowing the path of destiny allows you to change it. Of course, without knowledge of destiny means you may change the original fate to something worse. Destiny is what happens if nothing is changed, and even the slightest change will change the future. However, being unaware of the future and the effects can lead to no change, even if you think you're changing something. You may make a decision that is different than you normally would, but that doesnt mean you changed destiny. It was likely destined you'd make that decision. However, if you knew what decision would lead to a certain future, you are then able to change the decision to change the future." Trek said. Servu was completely blank.

"Are you normal, ever?" Servu asked seriously. Trek chuckled, a chill running down Servu's spine.

"I'll give another demonstration...attack me." Trek replied. Servu hesitated only an instant before lashing out with his claw. Trek flipped a tarot card and held it like a shield.

"Retaliation, upside down! Symbolizes a failure to strike me!" Trek said, not looking at the card. Servu's fist struck a forcefield, the force of the blow striking himself. Servu grunted and fell to the ground in pain.

"And since I had the barrier activated, it proves the card was destined to be flipped." Trek said matter-of-factly.

"Freak." Servu snarled.

"I get that alot." Trek replied calmly.

"Aren't you going to get mad?" Servu asked.

"No." Trek said calmly

"Are you always this calm?" Servu demanded.

"Yes." Trek replied emotionlessly

"Damn, you're creepy. At least I get mad sometimes!" Servu said.

"How's that working for you?" Trek asked.

"Huh?" Servu asked, puzzled. That was out of the blue.

"I thought so." Trek said calmly, as if stating the obvious.

"Huh?" Servu repeated, thoroughly confused.

"Further proving my point." Trek replied, now hinting at Servu's intellect.

"WHAT POINT?!" Servu shouted.

"Where is this getting you?" Trek asked calmly.

"Closer to beating the hell out of you!" Servu snarled.

"You already failed at that." Trek replied sensibly. Servu lunged forward, punching at Trek, once more hitting the barrer and grunting in pain. Ignoring this, Servu repeated the foolish strike. Trek watched with some amusement.

"As amusing as this is..." (Servu hit barrier again) "Surely you see anger isn't helping..." (Servu repeats the attack) "Ok, you done injuring yourself?" Trek asked finally.

"One more!" Servu muttered, distracted, punching the barrier one last time before knocking himself unconscious. Trek stared at this in amazement.

"Now how was I the one insulted in training camp?" Trek muttered to himself, flipping the top tarot card.

"Eternal Shield, right side up." he said with a smirk, flipping the next two. "The Fool and the Skeptic. I wonder what these cards have in common with this last event." Trek said with a laugh, before calmly reshuffling the tarot deck, while waiting for Servu to wake up.

**Ok, I lied. There was almost no plot to this chapter.**


	6. Briefing

**Wow, I'm falling behind in updating. **

"Hey, Noxus. Is this the area the war is going to be?" Spire asked. Noxus sighed and examined the viewscreen.

"Yes. You'd think they'd have already arrived though..." Noxus replied. At that moment, energy beams flashed past the _Eternal Justice_ and Noxus jerked the controls out of reflex, avoiding a second close beam. Spire had reacted similarly, and was already turned the _Avalanche _to face the source of the weapon fire. A small Space Pirate army had appeared out of nowhere it seemed and had immediately attacked.

"Can't seem to go three days without someone trying to kill you, huh?" Noxus asked and Spire chuckled.

"I guess not. Let's take them down then!" Spire replied eagerly.

"I suppose it helps to enjoy suicidal missions." Noxus muttered, firing. Like Trace, Noxus had installed a special weapon cannon. Rather than typical beams, he had equipped his ship with enhanced Judicator cannons, for both offensive and defensive attacks, and it helped with capturing evildoers. Trace, of course, had Imperialist cannons. Noxus fired rapidy, the icy beams slicing through the Pirate fighters, causing them to explode as Spire's energy cannons destroyed the frozen crafts. After a while, the Judicator cannons would lose their charge, and weaken the freezing effect, but it was a terrific weapon for huge attack waves.

"General Weavel, we just received a report from our small army we sent ahead." a Space Pirate reported nervously. Weavel glanced at him in mild interest.

"2 ships are currently there, and a fight broke out. Ships have been identified as the Avalanche and Eternal Justice. Hm, what a stupid name." the officer muttered. Weavel chuckled.

"Spire and Noxus, huh? I look forward to engaging them in battle once more. No matter. Have the forces return. Best to take minimal casualities now, and save the heavy fighting for the Federation and the Empire." Weavel ordered and the officer left hurriedly.

Samus finally reached the Federation ship and boarded, hurrying to Grater's office.

"Yes, Commander?" she asked, with the slightest hint of sarcasm. Grater cleared his throat loudly, and examined a few papers before giving them to her. She studied them. It was a report concerning Sylux's attack on a Federation battleship.

"You wrote this...so you were there?" she asked in astonishment. Grater nodded gravely.

"The escape pod's distress signal attracted our backup troops. Good thing." he said loudly.

"So, where do you think he went?" Samus asked.

"He wasn't there by coincidence. He knew about the mobilization of troops. I think he knows about war, and he'll definitely interfere. We need you more than ever." Grater explained.

"Enlighten me: Why am I assisting with a war effort?" Samus asked seriously.

"Well, we need you as of now to repel Sylux, and hopefully not as an actual participant in the war. Oh, and the entire Federation's existence relies on our victory in the war." Grater replied loudly. Samus nodded absently.

"I'll get on it." she said, turning to return to her ship. Despite her hatred of wars, she was going to have to help the Federation in this struggle.

Trace landed his ship in the Kriken battleship's docking bay and exitted, Imperialist in hand. Drek was doing the same, although he was much more relaxed than Trace was. Relaxed and off-guard are two very different things, Trace thought. A small kriken squad met them at the entrance to the docking bay and led them to the bridge of the ship. The Overlord stood waiting.

"Thanks for the help earlier." the Overlord said abruptly and Trace nodded modestly, something Drek always told him to do when complimented. Drek, on the other hand, made no motion in reply to the thanks. The Overlord seemed slightly surprised at the lack of response, but continued.

"As you probably know, the Empire received a warning that the Federation will soon attack. Our sources, while unable to pinpoint the message's origins, managed to discover that the Federation is indeed moving towards the coordinates, and is prepared for battle. More disturbing at the moment is the sudden mobilization of the Space Pirates, and they have already attacked us, as you know. The current leader of the Space Pirate Army is General Weavel..." the Overlord explained, but stopped as Trace flinched.

"You know him?" the Overlord asked, curious.

"Yeah, he's one of my rival hunters. Not very strong though." Trace explained. The Overlord rolled his eye and continued.

"We are unaware of the goals of the Space Pirates, or why they chose now to interfere." the Overlord finished. Drek spoke up.

"Could it be possible a 3rd or 4th party has arranged this war?" he asked, his emerald eye gleaming. The Overlord seemed strangely intimidated by Drek, despite holding the revered rank of Overlord.

"We have no proof, nor any suspects for who would have arranged it. While the Empire has a great deal of enemies, we find it unlikely that any group would be able to arrange a 3 way war wthout being detected in doing so." the Overlord said. Drek frowned slightly, thinking.

"It's highly possible. The sender is unknown, but the real questions are these: If it's not a set-up, who sent it? If it is...why?" Trace said abruptly. Neither of the other krikens spoke for a moment.

"Come to think of it...that's more worrisome than the idea of the war itself. Who would be pulling the strings behind this?" Drek murmured.

"Or more importantly, what could they hope to gain?" Trace asked.


	7. Gathering of Fate

Servu slowly regained consciousness and he was immediately confused. Where was he? Why was he here? What was he doing on the ground?

"Ah, you woke up at last." said a familar voice that Servu couldn't immediately place. He blinked, getting to his feet. He looked around the office-like room and his yellow eye caught sight of the yellow kriken at a table nearby.

"Great, it's the dork." Servu muttered and Trek smiled eeriely. "Seriously, stop doing that!" Servu snapped. Trek shrugged and shuffled the tarot deck.

"Ok, now why did you call me here?" Servu asked after a minute or two. Trek smiled, earning a wince from Servu.

"Simply to explain the current events, and help you accomplish your goals." Trek replied, laying 3 facedown cards on the table. Servu's eye narrowed suspiciously.

"And you would know my goals?" Servu mocked. Trek ignored him, instead flipping the first card over.

"The Skeptic, as you know, represents you. The second card represents your present circumstances, and the third represents the future, in this case, your goals." Trek explained, now flipping the second card over. Servu blinked.

"The Eternal Blade?" Servu muttered. Trek seemed slightly surprised.

"Indeed. I'm surprised you recognize it. The Eternal Blade represents a conflict that cannot be resolved. Now the third card...interesting. This card may represent what I needed to know." Trek mused. Servu looked at the card impatiently and then gasped.

"The Rise of the Empire card. It means your goal is to bring glory to yourself, and the Empire. However, it also tells me you have a direct influence on my fate as well." Trek replied solemnly. Servu's shocked expression changed to one of skepticism.

"And how's that?" Servu challenged. Trek smirked chillingly.

"Because, this war isnt a coincidence. It was all arranged from the beginning. Destiny had to be changed, and a war is the perfect way to change it!" Trek said. Servu looked blank.

"I dont get it. Care to explain, oh Master of Destiny?" Servu asked sarcastically.

"Very well. It originated several years ago, around graduation from the training camp. I was appointed advisor to the Emperor, due to my accurate predictions. Although not taken completely seriously, I at least had a small part in the Empire. However, I predicted the death of the Emperor by a dark force. This would lead to the fall of the Empire. The cards were these...the Black Kriken, upside down, the Shadow, and the Rise of the Empire, upside down." Trek explained.

"I heard about that incident. Although your "prediction" was kept on record, you were exiled as a threat to the Empire!" Servu sneered. Trek nodded calmly.

"Indeed, but before that, I arranged to prevent the events. I obtained an experimental sample of Dark Armor..." Servu gasped and Trek stared at him in surprise.

"Kriken Labs?" Servu asked. Trek nodded calmly. "So that's how we got some of that stuff. Do you have any idea what problems that stuff caused?" Servu nearly screamed. Trek smirked.

"Of course. You see, the Dark League was planning the assassination! With us in possession of Dark Armor, they decided an army of Dark League Krikens was better than collapse of government and a vendetta against them." Trek explained. "But I had the last laugh. I specifically tampered with the sample to the extent that experimenting with it was dangerous. Too dangerous for the scientists to control. The project was discontinued, but research went on. I was exiled, and the Empire was safe." Trek explained.

Servu nodded. That explained quite a bit, but it didnt answer the current concerns. "So what was the problem?" Servu asked.

"Simply put, I had gone through alot of trouble to save the Empire, and I was concerned about my own fate. So I studied the cards and determined that the Emperor would be assassinated by a traitor. This would lead to the fall of the Empire. What I didnt understand was my role. Being exiled, it is impossible for me to be the assassin. So I continued to study. Then it came to me. There is a record of my prediction! Upon the Emperor's death, a successor must be chosen. There are very few candidates for the title. First choice is the advisor, unless it is suspected they had a hand in the death." Trek said.

"But you're exiled." Servu pointed out.

"Correct. But the record will point out that I predicted the situation, and since I wasnt involved, my exile would be overturned, putting me into the throne." Trek's voice changed to slight bitterness, his first real emotion.

"I dont get it. Isnt that a good thing? You'd be the ruler of the Empire?!" Servu said in confusion.

"There's more to it. It's also been common knowledge that due to my predictions, I can save the Empire from economic devastation, as well as military. However, the final card in an extremely long thread proved otherwise. The Betrayal." Trek stopped speaking and Servu struggled to understand.

"You'd be betrayed?" Servu asked, getting the gist. Trek nodded.

"I'd save the Empire from ruin, and then get overthrown. The betrayer is unknown." Trek said. There was a long silence.

"So...what does that have to do with the current situation?" Servu asked finally.

Trek smirked again. "I know know my destiny, should I change nothing. I will die after saving the Empire. I saved it once at the cost of exile. I will not die to save it this time. I considered how to change destiny, but everything keeps returning to the Emperor's death. Some things cannot be changed. If the Empire goes to war, he will likely die in battle. If the Empire doesn't, he will be assassinated. There is no way for me to prevent his death unless the Empire goes to war. The Emperor is hesitant to start a war, so I stepped in." Trek explained and Servu gaped.

"YOU STARTED THE WAR?!" Servu yelled in a mixture of fury and shock.

"Of course. It wasnt hard, Neither the Empire or the Federation would take the risk, so both are under the conclusion the other started the battle. Since the Empire never does negotiations, the situation shouldnt come up where they realize it until it no longer matters. The Space Pirates were thrown in for extra chaos. Besides, I want to save the Empire, not have the Pirates prey on a weakened military after a war. This way, the Pirates take casualties, too." Trek said calmly.

"But you said that you started the war to prevent the Emperor's death, but how does that help?" Servu challenged. Trek's smile widened sinisterly.

"Not quite. I have options this way. I can prevent the death...or arrange it." Trek said, chuckling.

"What do you mean, arrange it?" Servu asked nervously.

"Your goals are to rule the Empire...and also to destroy Trace. If Trace is accused of murdering the Emperor, and you kill Trace, you will be top candidate for Emperor." Trek replied.

"Why Trace?" Servu asked in confusion. As Emperor, he could keep Trace exiled forever, and destroy Trace's reputation for eternity.

"The cards tell it all. Everything is destined, Servu. Should Trace survive the war, you will be killed before you can ascend the throne. Then I am the main candidate again, and the efforts were wasted." Trek said calmly. He flipped over 3 more tarot cards and blinked in shock.

"Hmm...I didnt expect this. The Skeptic card, symbolizing you. The Black Kriken, upside down symbolizing the death of the Emperor, and the Eternal Blade, upside down. The resolution of conflict. Perhaps you must be the assassin..." Trek said calmly. Servu gaped at him.

"You cant be serious!" Servu protested. Trek gazed at him silently.

"I'm not going to kill the Emperor!" Servu snarled angrily. The nerve of the creep! Trek smiled.

"If you are destined to be the assassin, I am guaranteed to change my fate. If you dont do it, I prevented the death. If you do it, I arranged it. The difference is, by doing it, you accomplish your goals. If you dont, the Empire resumes as before. We met only because of the war, and I created the war to change my fate. The rest is up to you, Servu!" Trek said, turning away from the stunned kriken.

**Way too much dialogue in this chapter, and by this point probably everyone hates tarot cards and the word "fate".**


	8. The First Battle part 1

**Wow, I'm slipping up with updates. Then again, this is one of my harder fics to write.**

Sylux landed his ship upon the surface of the targeted planet. He had recently received a message telling him to go there, and he was interested in why the message had been sent, and by who. He knew it was the same person as the one who sent the war messages, and the idea that someone was pulling the strings behind one of the most destructive wars amused him. This was where the battles would take place. It was the perfect place to create chaos with the Federation troops. He looked out towards the horizon, utilizing an Imperialist for a better view and smirked. The message had been correct. The Federation was nearing the site, and would be amassing their army for an attack. He looked at the other horizon, and saw a few Space Pirate crafts appearing in the distance, although they didn't approach the open field.

"Interesting. So the battles will be on a plain...with only a few rock pillars for shelter. With cliffs overlooking the field. Is the Federation that idiotic? Well, at least I'll know their formations, so I can create some difficulties..." Sylux murmured, re-equipping his Shock Coil. He exitted his ship and proceeded to scale a large mountain. From a mountain ledge, he'd have the perfect sniping postion.

Meanwhile, the Kriken army waited at a distance from the planet. They had seen the Federation units and the Space Pirate army land on the planet, undoubtedly planning their attack and defense formations.

"So pathetic, isn't it? After hundreds of years, they still think ground battles are effective. They'll have anti-aircraft turrets, though, so we need to play by their rules, this time around." the Overlord muttered. Trace nodded absently, staring out at the planet. There was one issue he noticed. He had seen the Delano 8 arrive at the planet as well. Sylux was definitely going to be giving the Federation a hard time, so there was a small advantage there. However, that didn't mean Sylux was on their side. He had suffered at the hands of the Empire as had almost every specie. Interesting how no one knew what specie Sylux was, but Trace deflected the thought.

"So, what will we do?" Trace asked, and the Overlord hesitated.

"The Emperor has ordered the creation of a base on the planet's moon. That's where I'm going, but you two are now assigned a commanding rank, if you so desire."

"I'm not much of an army commander. I prefer my own tactics." Drek replied immediately. Trace agreed, and the Overlord shrugged.

"Escort the main army to the planet. We will attack before they are prepared. A cheap tactic, but highly effective. Any objections?" the Overlord asked. Neither kriken spoke, so the Overlord nodded to an officer nearby.

"So, what do you think?" Drek asked Trace a few minutes later as they reached the sleeping quarters they had been given. "About the war?" Drek clarified. Trace turned to his brother, looking the venom kriken's emerald eye.

"I think there's more to this than a simple war. I want to figure out who's behind it. Everything recently has been controlled by a secret party. At Tetra, it was Gorea. The True Power was run by the Dark Hunter. The event at the Empire was from Servu, and at Abyss, it was the Dark League. This is no different, considering the message. I just don't know who, or why." Trace replied. Drek nodded solemnly.

"I don't know what there is to gain from arranging a war. More importantly, if the war was spontaneous, and no one arranged it...then who is allied with the Empire enough to warn us?" Drek said.

"Why did the Pirates leave?" Spire asked, seeing the troops withdraw. Noxus narrowed his eyes.

"Well, we were winning. That's the only idea for it." Noxus replied. The situation with the war was getting more and more suspicious. "We're almost to the coordinates, though."

"Let's do this then. It's been a while since the last mission." Spire said confidently. Noxus was amazed. Only months before, Spire had been forced to the reality of the extinction of the Diamonts, and considered resigning as a hunter. Now he was recklessly joining fights.

Samus flew towards the planet in question, looking for Sylux. He was the hunter and she was the hunted in most situations, but the role was reversed this time. Although tracking him was increasingly difficult, as his Delano 8 had increased stealth abilities. She landed on the planet, next to the Federation base and entered. Grater was already there. How he got there first was beyond her, but she didn't care.

"Anything, Aran?" Grater yelled. Samus shook her head.

"Nothing yet. All clues point to him being on this planet, but his exact location is unspecified. He could be sniping at the base, or infiltrating. Are the ground troops ready? The Kriken Empire troops are nearby as well, and the Space Pirates are also here. I heard they joined the war effort as well, so this is a 3 sided war. The Empire vs the Space Pirates vs the Federation. The complications appear to be Sylux's interference." Samus reported. Grater considered this.

"The troops are ready, and our base defenses are up. We are in this deep. We must determine the sender of the message. This seems too convenient." Grater barked. Samus nodded.

"I've been working on tracking the signal, but it's heavily encoded..." Samus began, but an officer burst in.

"Sir! Space Pirates have been dropped within range of our base. About a hundred of them! Orders?" the officer reported nervously.

"Deploy Team A to deal with them. Be careful!" Grater ordered. The officer saluted and ran out. Grater sat back in his chair and sighed.

"Will you be alright in case of an attack?" Samus asked. Grater nodded, pulling a pair of laser pistols from his belt. Samus noted these were high powered defense pistols, which could hold off a large group of attackers if the shooter was competent. She nodded.

"Assist the troops. You have experience in such matters." Grater ordered and Samus saluted before leaving. The war had begun...and this was the first battle. She frowned as she considered the numbers of casualties this 3 way war would trigger. She brushed the thoughts aside. Now wasn't the time to reflect on the future. Her presence and focus would be crucial to this war.

Elsewhere, Trek smiled as he studied a visual of the unfolding event.

"It's begun. This is the first step to accomplishing my goals. And yours, Servu." the yellow kriken murmured, turning to the unmoving red kriken. Servu's eye gleamed.

"Who will win this battle, oh predictor of the future?" Servu challenged. Trek smirked, shuffling the tarot deck. He studied the top two cards, and wrote something on a piece of paper, then folded the paper and placed it aside, along with the two cards, which he placed facedown.

"It'll take the fun out of watching if I tell you, but I wrote the cards I drew and the interpretations. Let's see if I'm right after the battle. Barring interference from me, everything will play out precisely as predicted." Trek said calmly. Servu shrugged, turning to the visual of the incoming battle. He didn't care who won this fight, as neither outcome would help him.

"The outcome matters very much to you, Servu. All will be clear when the time is right." Trek said and Servu flinched. Could he read minds? "No, I can't read minds." Trek said simply.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	9. The First Battle part 2

**Ok, lazy time over. I really need to speed up the updates.**

Weavel examined the battlefield that had been 'chosen' by the Federation. He marveled momentarily on how incredibly idiotic they were. Why did they place their base on a plain with nothing more than a few large boulders and stone pillars to defend them? A true military strategist would have at least chosen a sheltered area, giving the defense team the higher ground. Humans, what could you expect from beings so weak?

"General, a Federation team was mobilized. Our first attack squad is beginning the attack." a pirate officer reported. Weavel nodded, involuntarily glancing at his cybernetic arm clutching the Battlehammer weapon. He regretted not joining the battle, but Generals weren't supposed to be in risky battles until needed. Besides, this battle was just a decoy. That's why only 100 Space Pirates were being utilized. Plus, it was to test the Federation's strength.

"They're at the disadvantage here. They outnumber us and outpower us, but we can still win." Weavel said coldly. "Just be sure there are no slip-ups. We can afford to lose a few troops, but I expect at least 100 Federation troops slain."

"Sir...there are only 50 Federation troops." the officer reported in disbelief. Weavel turned to the report and examined it quickly before activating a visual screen. Sure enough, only 51 humans were outside the base, watching the Space Pirate troops approach.

"51? Samus is already here? All the better." Weavel murmured. He turned to the officer. "Prepare the weapon. Samus must be killed or captured." he ordered. The officer nodded and left the office. Weavel returned his gaze to the visual. "You can't escape this time, Samus." he whispered.

Meanwhile, Samus exitted the base, following behind the 50 other Federation troops of Team A. 50 seemed like too few in a war, but she reminded herself that there were several other battle teams. Hopefully, they wouldn't be needed. Wars were wasteful, and pointless. Hundreds of death and pain to settle a conflict wasn't what the universe needed more of. The Krikens created war for their own purposes, so it would be fitting to battle krikens, but why were the Pirates here as well?

"Let's do this." a soldier said solemnly, raising a laser rifle and firing at the approaching Space Pirates. Samus watched the bolt strike one of the Pirates, who stumbled back before falling to the ground dead. Samus raised her arm cannon and fired a missile to follow up the first shot. The Pirates managed to get out of the way, but one of the rear pirates collapsed, a gaping hole in its chest. Such graphic violence was something Samus endured during every raid on the Pirate operations, but this one seemed pointless. There was no purpose to this fight.

Several Space Pirates raised their weapons, unleashing a hail of laser fire at the Federation troops. Several troopers dove to the ground, using the low ground as vantage points to fire upon the pirates. Samus dodged a laser, returning fire with her missiles. She blocked out the yells of Pirates as they fell. Some Federation troops let out equally horrifying shouts as they were struck by deadly laser fire. Some troopers took refuge behind stone pillars, using the cover to unleash their own attacks. One small group of Pirates had been eradicated, but the constant fire from the enemy forced her to also take shelter.

"Whose idea was it to make the base here?" she muttered, firing another missile, one Pirate falling to the ground as a result. There was almost no cover from the weapon fire. The difference was, the pirates were very good at taking advantage of terrain. The base was bordered with a rocky cliff, and several pirates were on top of said cliffs, using this exceptional vantage point to gun down several Federation troops without the troops knowing what had hit them. Samus equipped the Battlehammer weapon and used the miniature explosives to flush out the Pirates that were utilizing the cliff vantage points. Once they were out of hiding, she killed them using a few Power Beam bolts to their head.

Despite the massive casualties the pirates seemed to be taking, although that could be because they outnumbered the Federation soldiers, 2 to 1, the Federation was clearly losing the battle. Without enough cover, several troops were sitting ducks, and often were the first to fall in an agonized shout. Samus noticed the Pirates further behind in the ranks were clutching a different weapon. She instinctively equipped the Imperialist, zooming in on the weapon. It was unfamiliar. No matter, they'd acquire one after the battle for examination. One Pirate fired in her direction. A pulse of blue energy struck the pillar she was sheltered behind, exploding in a blue shockwave that threw her roughly to the ground. Nothing was harmed, aside from her dignity, and she was not looking forward to seeing what the weapon did to a living creature.

One pirate raised the weapon and fired at Samus, but one Federation soldier got in the way. There was an instant where the soldier seemed to glow with blue energy, as if frozen in time. Then the soldier collapsed, unmistakably dead. Samus stared at the fallen soldier for a moment before firing missiles at the Pirate who had killed him. The pirate tried to dodge, but was ultimately hit. Unnerved by the death of another soldier, several more troopers poked their laser rifles out from their cover and fired at the pirates. Several more pirates collapsed, smoking holes in various areas if their bodies. The odds were still in the Space Pirates' favor, having about 35 remaining against the mere 24 the Federation had. One Pirate let out a strange snarl and tossed his weapon aside, pulling a different gun from its utility belt it wore.

"What's this?" Samus murmured, seizing the fallen weapon and firing it at the pirate who had dropped it. The pulse of blue energy lanced out and hit the pirate, who laughed and fired its own gun. Instead of a laser bolt or a blue energy pulse, the new weapon fired a small shell, which exploded with surprising power. Samus whirled around to see what the shell had hit. At least 6 troopers had been killed in the blast, and Samus felt overwhelmed by the power the Pirates had. The surreality of the toll of the war was beginning to worry her more than ever. She fired missiles at the somehow surviving pirate who almost immediately died upon the missile's impact. So the pirates were immune to the blue pulse weapon?

On the mountaintop, Sylux watched the battle passively. Although he would love nothing more than to use the Imperialist to kill Samus, he also wanted to see how weak the Federation really was. Despite being outnumbered 2 to 1, they still were covered enough to hold the pirates off. Time to change that. He went to his ship's storage compartment and withdrew 3 small capsules. He flipped a switch on each one and threw it into the melee below. He watched as each fell. One landed right next to 4 more Federation troops. Another landed by the Space Pirates, the last nearly landed next to Samus, but it bounced, landing too far away to do any damage. Pity. Sylux pressed a button on his suit and 3 explosions occured below. About 7 Space Pirates and at least 4 more Federation troops died instantly. Sylux chuckled, equipping the Imperialist and scoping at the battlefield. Samus was in the open, an easy sniping target.

Back on the battlefield, Samus nearly flinched when 3 explosions sounded. One behind her, one by the Space Pirates, and one not too far away from her, but out of range. She swore under her breath, dodging a laser shot from the Space Pirates. The battle was under fire. She stepped forward, using the smoke from the explosions as a cover and fired missiles at the remaining pirates. The only real escape was to finish the battle. A red beam flew just past her head and she jerked her head towards the mountain top.

"Damn it..." Sylux muttered. He had pulled the trigger a fraction of a second too late, and had missed. Samus had turned her head and he hastily realigned the shot. The best bet was a serious wound, not a fatal headshot. As his finger tightened on the trigger, a red beam narrowly missed his own head, the shooter being Samus. "Damn...she found me!" he cursed, firing. The red beam missed Samus' foot. He knew when to back off from a fight. He'd be back. He turned to the Delano 8 and flew off to a different location.

"General, our troops have been overwhelmed. Shall I give the order?" the pirate officer asked Weavel. Weavel glanced at the visual dismissively.

"Use the weapon against Samus. Kill her and any troops left." he said coldly. The officer nodded and spoke into a communication device. Weavel returned his gaze to the screen, watching as the last pirate was gunned down. Only Samus and two more troopers remained alive. But not for long.

As the last pirate fell, Samus let out a sigh of relief. The first battle was over. She turned to see the damage the Federation had taken. To her horror, only 2 troopers remained alive. She went over to see how they were handling the narrow escape.

"We couldn't have done it without you, Samus." Frank Lyte, a lieutenant said gratefully. The other soldier was a private named Greg Darc. They looked at the devastation the battle had caused. "This war will be hell..." Frank said solemnly. He was clearly a man used to seeing such devastation. Greg seemed more emotionally affected by the loss of 48 Federation soldiers. Some might have been the friends of the survivors. The dead wouldn't be remembered other than by a select few. What had the battle accomplished? What accomplishment could possibly exist? That was just one battle.

"Look out!" Greg shouted, pulling both Samus and Frank to the ground as a shell whizzed over their heads, exploding with great power. Samus turned to face the source of the shot and gasped. A strange cybernetic creature seemed to have appeared from no where. It was somewhat humanoid, but with 6 legs and 4 arms. Each arm held a different weapon, and the legs held the body like an insect's.

"Hello, Samus. I am General Weavel. This creature you see before you is the newest weapon of the Space Pirate Army. It'll be the cause of your demise. And the survivors from our fun little battle. You've lost, it is immune to all of your weaponry!" Weavel's voice spoke from the machine. Samus scowled under her helmet. The battle had done nothing, and now she had to deal with this.

"You won't be alone on this fight!" Greg and Frank said confidently, stepping towards the machine. Samus nodded and they faced the cyborg. The battle hadn't ended yet...and the war was far from over...

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	10. Sacrifice

**Might as well return to work. I'll try to pick up update speeds, since I'm out of school for a while. College winter breaks are awesome.**

Frank Lyte, Greg Darc, and Samus were alone, facing the strange insect-like machine of the space pirates. They were the only 3 on both sides of the firefight that had survived. One thing Samus almost immediately noticed about the other two soldiers was that Frank, unlike Greg, was serious and emotionless. Greg was slightly more naive. He had probably never seen battle until today, and Samus was willing to bet the memory would haunt him forever. She wasn't immune to the after effects of the battle, despite her ability to conceal her emotions. She turned her thoughts back to the cybernetic weapon. Weavel claimed it was immune to her weapons, but that could be false. Everything in her experience had a weakness, even things considered to be invincible. It was just a matter of finding the weakness and exploiting it. The machine had a human-like torso, with glowing red lights where eyes would be. She was better those were visual cameras, so Weavel was able to see the battle through the machine's vision. She doubted that Weavel was actually controlling the machine remotely. He could see the fight, but had no part in it.

The machine's body was held up by 6 mechanical legs, giving it the appearance of an insect. It had 4 additional limbs, each holding a weapon. Samus studied the weapons carefully. One was a Blue Pulse gun, another was one of the weapons that fired miniature explosive shells. A third appeared to be an energy blade, much like Weavel's Half-turret blade. The fourth was a targeting laser cannon. So the machine could fight at both close and long range combat. The entire surface of the machine was bronze colored, except the 'head' which was black. "Ready?" she muttered to Frank, who nodded grimly, readying his weapon. Greg nodded affirmatively, aiming his gun as well. Samus fired a missile at the machine, but it reacted immediately, firing a burst of energy from the laser cannon, intercepting the missile and destroying it. Samus scowled, but a thought came to mind. If the machine was immune, why bother countering it? It reminded her of the battle with the Dark League's Dark Dragon, where Spire noted the dragon only blocked certain attacks, while ignoring the others. Next to her, Frank had fired a laser burst at one of the machine's arms, trying to cripple the weapons. The machine moved its arm, the shot missing. Greg focused his weapon fire at the machine's legs, but the machine backtracked, the shots all coming short or overshooting.

"Don't worry, General. The machine's defense maneuvers are perfect." the Space Pirate officer assured Weavel, who scowled slightly.

"Why bother with defense? There are 3 opponents. If this machine is as powerful as advertised, it should be able to finish them quickly." Weavel replied coldly. The officer nodded nervously and spoke quickly into a communication device.

Samus fired more missiles, hoping one would strike the machine before being intercepted and suddenly, Weavel's voice came from the machine again.

"By now you realized the machine's defensive abilities are more than a match for you. Now try the offensive abilities!" Weavel laughed coldly and the machine raised its weapons. Samus gasped as a pulse of blue energy flew at her. She dove aside, rolling as she hit the ground, and ducked behind a small rock shelter. A small shell exploded overhead and she ducked from behind the shelter and fired missiles. A laser shot intercepted the missiles, one shot narrowly missing her head. Frank and Greg were unsheltered, firing their weapons bravely at the machine's limbs, but the machine continued to sidestep and dodge the shots with ease.

"We're not getting anywhere with this!" Greg muttered angrily, moving forward slightly, still firing at the machine's legs.

"Careful, private!" Frank said worriedly, watching the weapons carefully. This was not going to be easy, but they had to stop the machine. If they couldn't, the Federation base was in danger. Almost as if the machine could read his thoughts, the laser cannon jerked upwards, firing a powerful burst at the base itself. "Damn it!" Frank muttered, throwing a large stone at the beam, intercepting a portion of the blast. The laser hit the base, creating a small crater in the wall. It would ordinarily have blasted half the wall apart. Frank had to duck as a pulse of energy was fired at him, missing by a hair. Meanwhile, Greg was now trying to avoid the spinning energy blade, as the machine advanced upon him, slashing the arm that held the sword-like energy beam. Greg tripped backwards over a large boulder, firing up at the machine, to no effect. The machine's body was immune to the laser rifle he held. Desperately, he tried to crawl backwards, as the energy blade was slammed down towards him. Samus, noticing the danger, fired an Imperialist shot from her temporary shelter, hitting the arm that clutched the blade. It jerked, the blade slicing only a minor gash across Greg's chest.

"Ah! That hurts!" Greg muttered, clutching the wound. The machine raised the arm to repeat the intended attack, and Greg rolled to the side, the blade missing by an inch, sending sparks as it struck the rocky ground, slicing through the rocks with terrifying ease. A second slower and he'd have been sliced in two. He fired his rifle at the weapons the machine was firing at Samus and Frank, hoping to at least disable one of them. The explosive weapon fired, the shell striking the base's gate, blowing a small, neat hole in the door. Greg took the opportunity and fired, hitting the mechanical claw holding the weapon. To his delight, the weapon fell and he managed to grab it, just as the energy blade swung towards him. "Least I'll be remembered." Greg thought to himself as he fired the weapon. The small, powerful shell exploded as it struck the machine's chest, doing no significant damage. He rolled as quickly as he could forwards, yelling in agony as the blade hit flesh and he collapsed, fighting the pain he was experiencing. He couldn't feel anything below his left knee. The energy blade had sliced it completely off. "Focus, Darc." he muttered to himself, firing the explosive shell at the offending arm clutching the blade. The arm shattered easily, proving either the inefficiency of the armor on the limbs, or the sheer power of the explosive shells. Greg was willing to bet his remaining leg that it was the second one.

"Greg!" Frank yelled in horror, probably just realizing the private's lower left leg was gone. Greg reached his arm desperately for the fallen energy blade, which was sizzling softly. He heard Frank firing his weapon at the machine and knew the machine must have aimed a weapon at him. He glanced up, seeing the blue pulse gun pointing at him. He lunged his weight forward, grabbing the energy sword's hilt and tried to prop his body up. He saw a brief flash of blue, felt it come into contact with his body, the force of the burst lifting him upright. "NO!" Frank yelled.

"Remember me..." Greg gasped, falling forward. Before darkness overcame him, he heard the energy blade sizzle. Even as his mind began to blank, he smiled ever so slightly before he knew no more.

Samus stared in mute horror as Greg was propelled upright by the blue pulse that struck his body. Frank let out a yell of horror, and Samus turned away for a moment. She knew Greg was dead. The pulse killed the target within seconds. He fell forward, still clutching the energy blade. She let out a shout of both shock and, inappropriate as it was, glee when she noticed that Greg fell at an angle so that the energy blade began cutting through the machine, severing the delicate mechanics of the cybernetic weapon. As Greg hit the ground, the blade fell from his limp grasp. The machine froze in place before falling to the ground as well, cut nearly completely in two, the red 'eyes' blinking before shutting off. Samus and Frank rushed towards their fallen comrade, knowing he was dead, but at the same time wishing that by some miracle he was alive. Frank quickly examined Greg's body, nodding solemnly. Samus carefully examined the machine, nodding as she ensured it was non-functional. She picked up the fallen energy blade, deactivating the blade's energy source. "He wants to be remembered." Frank said dully, a lone tear falling from his face. Samus nodded.

"He will be. He saved us, and the Federation troops in the base. He risked his life to stop this machine, and lost his life accomplishing it." Samus said. "Let's make sure his sacrifice was not in vain. This war must end before thousands more die." she said, leading the way back to the base. Frank followed, carrying the Greg's body with him. Ordinarily, Samus would have protested, but she knew that this time, the right thing to do would be to honor Greg's life, and his sacrifice. The horror of the battle had never been as awful as right then, at that moment.

"What happened?" Weavel asked dangerously to the officer, who stared at the visual with horror.

"I don't know General. The machine should have been able to survive any weaponry the Federation and Samus have!" the officer protested. Weavel scowled.

"It DID survive the Federation's weapons. Why was the machine given an energy sword? That can cut through almost ANYTHING!" Weavel shouted, withdrawing his own energy sword, which ordinarily was attached to his Half-turret, but since he was unlikely to use the tactic as a General, seemed more useful as a personal weapon. "Why weren't the machine's arms specially reinforced to prevent its own weapons from damaging them? The sword wouldn't have fallen to the soldier if the arm hadn't been damaged!" Weavel yelled.

"I didn't design the weapon, General. I merely have communication between you and the pirates who control the machine." the officer pleaded and Weavel scowled, before returning his gaze to the visual.

"We must withdraw for now. We aren't prepared for a second strike yet." Weavel said quietly and the officer nodded.

"General, you have a message. Source unknown, but the sender wishes to meet with you." the officer reported abruptly. Weavel turned to face the officer, puzzled.

"Where does this being wish to meet me?" Weavel asked coldly. The officer faltered.

"He said he'd send another message after, and I quote, 'Your machine is destroyed by a soldier's sacrifice'." the officer replied and Weavel's eyes widened in absolute shock.

"What did he say?" Weavel gasped, positive he had to have heard that wrong.

"The message was sent only a few minutes ago, but it said if you're interested in meeting him, he'll send a message with details after your machine is destroyed by a soldier's sacrifice." the officer stammered, unsure of Weavel's temperment. Weavel stared at the officer blankly for another second, processing the unusual information.

"I'm interested. Very interested." Weavel said softly, mind working frantically. Who could have known either about the machine, or the cause for its destruction...before it happened?

Servu stared at the visual and laughed. "For something so powerful, it fell so easily." he chuckled. Trek nodded and smiled eeriely.

"Indeed. Much like yourself. You are also very powerful, but your arrogance is your downfall. Weavel thought that gadget was invincible, but it was no match for its own abilities. Those energy swords are perhaps the strongest and most effective weapon ever designed, at least for close range. It's destiny, for observe..." Trek said, reaching for the cards he placed aside earlier, but Servu grabbed them first and gaped.

"The 'Destruction' and 'Sacrifice' cards?" Servu asked with shock, grabbing the paper Trek had placed with the cards. "The cards were Destruction, symbolizing the defeat of a great power, and Sacrifice, victory at a cost. The card at the top of the tarot deck symbolizes the victor. Servu will draw it after shuffling it, and will prove destiny is no hoax." Servu read, scowling at Trek.

"Go ahead, Servu. Shuffle and draw." Trek said calmly, watching the red kriken with a smirk. Servu seized the tarot deck and shuffled quickly, eye glaring at the yellow kriken. He flipped the top card and his jaw dropped.

"Still skeptical are we? The card you should have drawn is 'Invaders', upside down. Since the Federation controls this area, the invaders are the Space Pirates. With the card upside down, it symbolizes that the Invaders lost." Trek explained, not even looking at the card. Servu stared at Trek in surprise, then suspicion.

"How do you know?" Servu challenged. Trek chuckled.

"I saw the outcome of the battle long before the battle occured. Now, the question is your path, Servu. Do you do what you are destined to? I have an appointment soon, so you better make your choice." Trek said, retrieving the deck and cards and shuffling. He flipped a card and smiled. "I know your choice, Servu. You have your chance to change it now." he said with an eerie smirk. Servu glared at him.

"Are we back to the 'kill the Emperor' thing again?" Servu asked angrily. Trek smiled again.

"That depends on your view. I cannot force you to kill the Emperor, nor will I prevent you from doing so. It's your decision, Servu." Trek said, standing and walking through a wall panel behind the desk. Servu scowled and turned back towards the docking bay. He reached his ship and took off, pondering the question in his mind. He noticed he had a new message and quickly responded to it.

"Damn him!" Servu swore. The image of Trek's 'The Black Kriken' card appeared, placed upside down. "He knew what I planned! How the hell does he do that?" he muttered angrily. A second message popped up and Servu answered it.

"Destiny, Servu." Trek's voice laughed, echoing in Servu's mind as he flew his ship away from the Destiny Space Station.

**I think this is my longest chapter ever.**


	11. Kriken Attack

**Here's another update.**

The Kriken Army was prepared for the first attack planned. Drek and Trace intended to give some support, but mostly stay out of the main fighting. According to the most recent report, the Federation had repelled a powerful Space Pirate attack, but had lost nearly all their first squad. Samus Aran's presence had been confirmed. The Overlord had to meet with the Emperor at the moon base that was being prepared, and wanted Trace and Drek to make a brief report on the situation for the Emperor to catch up on the events.

"Seems simple enough. Cheap, but effective, While the Federation recovers from the pirate assault, we attack the base and capture the commander. Without the commander, the rest of the war will be easy. In theory, it sounds great." Drek said. Trace looked at him for a second.

"But in reality?" Trace prompted and Drek chuckled.

"In reality, an assault on the base is massively difficult. Closed in areas and weapon fire everywhere. Such an assault with an army could be costly, but worthwhile. It's a mystery how Sylux seems to do it alone." Drek explained, examining his Imperialist. Trace checked his own weapon and nodded in satisfaction.

"This report says that the Federation has anti-aircraft weapons, so we'd have to advance on foot." Trace pointed out. Drek smiled slightly.

"That won't be necessary, bro. The report also says the rear defense of the base is very low. If we attack from the rear, we'd be able to slip through the hole. Only a few krikens can do that, so the majority of the army will have to do a frontal attack, but it shouldn't be too tricky, eh?" Drek replied, examining a readout from his ship's computer. Trace briefly wished he had brought his own ship, but Drek said it was better to stick together this time. Behind the Kriken Force III was a medium sized troop transport, which carried about 150 Krikens.

"Oh good, we're here." Trace said unenthusiastically, stretching as he stood up. Drek smirked.

"It shouldn't take too long." he said, leading Trace out of the ship onto a mountain overlooking the Federation base. "Humans...they completely overlooked that we have the high ground by building their base against a mountain." he motioned for the troop transport to go further from the base, and spoke into a communications device. Trace armed his Imperialist and scoped the area out.

"Strange...you'd think they'd have more automated defenses around here." Trace muttered. Drek shot him an incredulous look.

"We're attacking before they're ready after they fought through an attack." he pointed out. "As unfair as it seems to gang up on the Federation, this is war, so who gives a damn?" Drek chuckled, walking down a slope, Imperialist ready just in case of the appearance of a foe. Trace followed, scoping the area in case of other snipers. About 100 yards from the base, the Kriken Army had begun their race towards the base.

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Servu smiled slightly as he expertly piloted his ship towards the moon where he knew the Kriken Army had built their base. For a brief moment he wondered why he was willing to cripple the Kriken Empire with this attack. The answer was obvious. By doing so and getting away with it, he would be able to be a candidate for the new Emperor, giving him the glory and fame he deserved. Plus, the Emperor was a legendary fighter, so he would prove his skills this way also, even if he only proved it to himself and Trek. He closed his eye a moment, focusing on his objective. He knew the Kriken defenses almost as well as the commander of the defense teams. Upon entering the atmosphere of the moon, he prepared his Imperialist. He approached the base, allowing the defense guns to detect the ship, confirming it to be of Kriken allegiance. How wrong they were, this time. He landed, not too far from the base entrance, and exitted his ship, concealing his face will a long black cloak. He never really liked the look, but it seemed necessary in this case.

Upon entering the base, he watched the guards warily, one claw on his Imperialist, ready to shoot if the need presented itself. No guard made any movement and Servu passed them, smirking. Sometimes he wondered whether imposters could get into a Kriken base, and apparently they can, if they can impersonate a Kriken. As soon as he was in the guards' blind spot, he whirled around and slammed his weapon into the base of their skulls, knocking them out without so much as a groan. "Too easy." Servu sniffed dismissively, stealing a card key from one of the guards and slipping into a cloak pocket. He continued, increasing his pace, slightly worried the fallen guards would be noticed before he could finish the task. He turned a corner and reached a high security sector. He slid the stolen card through the slot and the doors slid open. Immediately, Servu fired his Imperialist, the red beam hitting a lone guard just within the room. As the kriken fell to the ground, Servu stepped past the body dismissively.

"Not much further..." Servu muttered to himself. He walked down a ramp to a lower floor. The Imperial conference rooms were in this area, and there were rarely any guards here, due to the superb security locks. All Kriken bases had one weakness of being almost identical, but since only krikens ever lasted long enough to see this far, there was minimal risk of invaders anyway. The cloak flapped behind him as he darted towards one of the conference room doors, listening carefully. Even the sound-resistant doors couldn't conceal all noise, if the listener had powerful enough hearing, like Servu did. Nothing behind door 1. He crept to the second and received the same result. That left door 3. Sure enough, there were voices, but the words weren't clear enough for Servu to understand them. He chuckled and typed in a security code on the door, and the doors slid open. Inside the room, the Emperor, the Overlord, and 4 elite Kriken bodyguards stood, the Emperor seated at the head of a long blue table. The Overlord had his back to the door, and was standing at the foot of the table. A red beam pierced him in the back and he was thrown forward. Servu ducked an Imperialist shot from a guard, chuckling as he entered the room.

Another red beam hit one guard, knocking it to the floor, bleeding from the chest, dead before it hit the floor. The Emperor ducked a shot from Servu, ducking beneath the table, but Servu knew it wasn't a cowardly move. From beneath the table, the Emperor could aim a concealed Imperialist. He leapt instinctively onto the table, twisting in midair to avoid an Imperialist shot. He fired, and a second guard fell with a short yell. Servu chuckled, sidestepping another attack and firing again, the third guard collapsing. The last guard fired again, but Servu was the third most accomplished sniper in Kriken history, and knew a bluff shot almost as well as Trace did. He didn't move, the beam missing by an inch. He fired quickly, finishing the last of the opposition. The Emperor remained.

"Alright your Majesty. Your time has come. Fight for your life!" Servu jeered and to his slight surprise, the Emperor stood up, holding a Space Pirate energy blade, which gleamed maliciously.

"As you wish, Servu." the black kriken said, throwing his Imperial cape aside. Servu blinked and threw his cloak aside as well. "I see I guessed correctly." the Emperor continued calmly.

"How would you know who I was?" Servu challenged, firing his Imperialist across the room. The Emperor dodged easily, almost effortlessly. The Emperor smiled slightly.

"Your style, Servu, is to eliminate all opposition, rather than the target intended. You first killed the Overlord, when you could have hit me and fled. Trace and Drek are the only others I know of with the ability to get here and they would have aimed for me. You are a traitor, and will die." The Emperor said coldly, spinning the blade expertly. Servu blinked slightly and laughed.

"You're nothing to me, your Highness. I am the greatest Kriken in existence!" Servu sneered. The Emperor ducked another Imperialist shot and smiled emotionlessly.

"Only in your mind, Servu." he replied and threw the energy blade. Servu leapt backwards with his terrific reflexes, the blade cutting and disabling his Imperialist. Servu scowled and seized the energy blade and advanced on the Emperor.

"You underestimated me...and now you die!" Servu yelled, bringing the blade down upon the leader of the Krikens. To his alarm, a second pirate energy blade intercepted the atttack, held by the Emperor. Servu gasped as the Emperor spun the blade, tearing Servu's weapon from his grasp. It clattered as it skittered across the polished tile floor.

"You underestimated me, Servu." the Emperor said with a hint of remorse and jabbed the blade forward. Servu jerked back, stumbling away from the Emperor, clutching the new wound, which seared painfully. He stared at the Emperor blankly and fell forward, falling over the body of one of the dead guards. The Emperor sighed and walked towards the door. "I regret it, but traitors cannot be tolerated." he said.

"I'll be tolerated this time, Emperor." Servu hissed from behind him. The Emperor whirled around and saw Servu fire the dead guard's Imperialist. The beam struck the Emperor in the chest and darkness took him almost immediately. "I regret it, but I will run the Empire someday." Servu hissed, retrieving his discarded cloak, and the Emperor's cape. Without a backward glance, he exitted the room, leaving the 6 bodies behind. He first slid the cape on, briefly admiring the fabric before flinging the cloak around him, once more concealing his identity. No one would know about the murder for perhaps an hour, and by that time, he would be gone. Chuckling, he hurried back to the entrance, pleased that the unconscious guards weren't awake or discovered. With a shrug, he fired twice, adding them to the list of the dead. He replaced the stolen key card and left, signalling the Kriken Force II and taking off.

"You have succeeded, Servu. Excellent work." Trek's voice said over the communication unit. Servu nodded curtly. "Return to the Station, if you will. There will be some guests arriving soon, but they are allies." Trek said, and the communication ended.

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Commander Grater glanced up as Samus entered the office, along with Lieutenant Frank Lyte, the latter carrying the body of a dead soldier, who Grater recognized as Greg Darc. "What happened?" Grater asked in a loud whisper. Samus turned to an officer nearby, who handed Grater a casuality report. Grater studied it in shock. "All of them?" he yelled. Samus nodded.

"Yes. Greg died saving me and Frank from the Space Pirate's new weapon. We were the only survivors of the battle." Samus said solemnly. Grater nodded, wringing his hands slightly.

"He will be honored for the sacrifice." Grater said softly, but still at excessive volume. Grater was visibly shaken by the report. "The pirates were driven back? Any offense by the Krikens?" he asked quickly, writing a note. Just then, an officer hurried in.

"Sir! Kriken attack force approaching!" the officer said urgently. Grater swore under his breath.

"They're kicking us while we're down, damn them!" he shouted. "Send Team B." he ordered reluctantly. "Samus, Lieutenant, stay out of this one." he said seriously. Frank and Samus nodded gratefully. The Second Battle was about to begin.


	12. Invasion part 1

**Another update. Yay!**

Trek chuckled to himself as he boarded his personal fighter craft, the Kriken Force I. His service to the Emperor had granted him this powerful craft before his exile. They would pay for that error, for it was only because of his exile the events were put into motion. Servu was destined to kill the Emperor, and the Overlord as well. The two most powerful Kriken leaders had been destined to die to assist Trek's future. True, the danger of forcing the Empire into an era of chaos was still there, but Trek predicted the era would be short-lived, and he was never wrong yet. He studied the reply to his second message and uploaded the coordinates sent. Within several minutes, he arrived at the meeting point, a small Space Pirate attack cruiser, He sent a message with the passphrase supplied to him and was allowed to dock.

Several Space Pirate guards waited as he exitted his ship, suspicious because he was a cloaked kriken. Nevertheless, they led him to a small conference room, where the cybernetic Space Pirate general sat waiting for him. Weavel seemed similarly surprised to see that he was meeting with a kriken, and was visibly alarmed to discover Trek was a male yellow kriken. Trek was used to this reaction, for he had been greeted with mockery all his life. It didn't trouble him anymore after so many years passed. He had been destined to be yellow, even if it was (incorrectly) concluded to be a female's color. If it was a female's color, he would not be male. It was just rarer, almost as rare as the venom color.

"General Weavel." Trek said with a nod, sitting in the chair opposite the pirate. Weavel nodded curtly. "My name is Trek. Before you ask, yes...I was named after both Trace and Drek. Call it uncreative parents, or call it destiny." Trek said calmly, withdrawing his tarot deck and shuffling. Weavel glanced at the deck with an odd expression, cold and calculating, both traits that Trek admired, and possessed.

"How did you know about the machine?" Weavel demanded abruptly. Trek chuckled and flipped over a card, showing it to the General.

"The Secret...a hidden power. After seeing the machine, I knew that it was the Secret. The next cards I flipped were Destruction and Sacrifice, predicting the machine's ruin at a cost. A soldier's sacrifice." Trek replied, smiling slightly. Weavel scoffed skeptically.

"Why are you here?" Weavel growled. Trek raised his red eye to Weavel and smiled wider.

"To help. Destiny works in strange ways, Weavel. You once again ascend to the rank of General after disgrace. Any other Space Pirate leader would never meet with a Kriken exile, even if the kriken swore his allegiance to the Space Pirates, and denounced all ties to the Empire." Trek explained, shuffling again.

"You're an exile? For what?" Weavel asked indifferently.

"Predicting the ruin of the Empire. I will avenge the error by bringing the ruin upon them. They scoff at my predictions, and I repay the favor!" Trek replied.

"How will you do that?" Weavel asked, betraying a shard of interest in his tone. Trek smiled.

"The two highest up in the Empire will die. Murdered by a kriken insider. All set up by my intervention in fate. I started this war, and I'll end it myself. These battles are nothing more than a distraction while the true war begins. Observe as each of your foes are destroyed from within! The Federation is next." Trek said, chuckling slightly.

"Then why meet with me, if you're doing all this yourself?" Weavel challenged. Trek laughed, and Weavel squirmed slightly.

"You need to follow my advice, or all will fail, and you'll be killed in the end. You can't deploy anymore ground troops for a short while. We will meet again, and I'll give you the ultimate reward. All you have to do is obey the plan, and you'll be considered the ultimate General of this war." Trek said and Weavel grinned.

"Alright. What's the first plan?" Weavel asked and Trek flipped a few cards, nodding to himself.

"The Federation is under attack by the Kriken army. Despite the Federation's best efforts, the krikens will storm the base and do tremendous damage before withdrawing. Your first attack weakened the defenses and the Empire does the rest. By that time, I'll meet with you again." Trek said. Weavel nodded.

"So do nothing?" Weavel asked. Trek smirked.

"This time around, do nothing." Trek agreed and stood to leave. "Don't call me, I'll call you." he said as he left the room. That appointment went as good as he hoped it would. There were some things to take care of first before all would be perfect. As he boarded his ship, he sent a few messages. Once all the loose ends were cleared up, he would be able to manipulate all the factors of the war.

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"Drek, I think the Federation knows about the attack." Trace called. Drek shrugged, watching as a group of about 50 Federation soldiers hurried out of the base, firing their weapons at the approaching kriken army.

"They didn't think this through." Drek muttered, sounding disappointed. He lifted his communications device. "Open fire with Imperialists. Don't get closer yet!" Moments later, red beams fired towards the Federation soldiers, several soldiers falling with a scream.

"This'll be a slaughter." Trace sighed. After another thirty seconds, Drek had to agree. The Kriken Army was too far away for the Federation soldiers to aim consistently, the problem non-existant for the Kriken attacks, due to the scoping capabilities of the krikens.

"Oh well. Let's move on." Drek snorted, leading Trace down a series of small ledges. "Good. Now we just need to drop down onto the roof of the base and invade from there." Drek said, pointing. Trace nodded and jumped down, landing gracefully on the roof. Drek followed, glancing towards the battle. The Federation troops had taken cover and had successfully taken out a group of kriken soldiers, but their casualties were still worse. In the short time that Drek hadn't been watching the battle, about half the Federation soldiers had been killed, and only 20 Krikens had fallen.

"Ready?" Trace asked, and Drek smirked. "How do we get in?"

"Simple, bro. Where we're standing is a ventilation shaft. If we cut through the hatch, we'll emerge inside the base. I've studied Federation temporary bases, and they have a few fatal flaws that don't exist in the more advanced bases, and they made this one in a hurry, so while it's a large building, it isn't well protected." Drek said, firing his Imperialist at various spots on the roof and in a few minutes, he had carved a hatch, which he lifted free, revealing the ventilation grate. With a hard stomp, the grate broke open, creating a passage large enough for a Triskelion to get through. Drek morphed to Triskelion and went through, and Trace followed, also in Triskelion.

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"Commander, the Krikens outnumber our troops and have pressed a major advantage!" a new officer reported, running into the room. Grater growled furiously.

"We have no other options! Send Team C for reinforcements. We may have to withdraw!" Grater ordered. "What the hell?" he muttered loudly, answering a message that just arrived.

"Mr. Grater..." the sender began.

"Commander!" Grater snarled in reply. The speaker chuckled in reply, and eerie sound that made a shiver run up Grater's spine.

"Not for much longer, I'm sure. Mr. Grater, your army doesn't have a chance. You must retreat, or you will lose not only your rank, but possibly your life." the voice spoke with almost no emotion.

"Is that a threat?" Grater demanded. The speaker, whose image still hadn't appeared, laughed coldly.

"It's not a threat, Mr. Grater. It's a warning. Should your defense fail, you will die. Accept it or not, it doesn't matter. It's destined, but you can change it. Or you could always be the man you are and flee..." the communication went out, and Grater let out a roar of fury, slamming his fist on his desk.

"Sir?" Samus asked, entering the office. She had removed her helmet, and her face showed concern. "What's wrong?"

"The Krikens have the advantage. I sent another team to aid them, but my hopes aren't high. Prepare to evacuate." he ordered and she nodded, replacing her helmet and leaving the room. Grater stood and grabbed the files of importance, placing them in a briefcase. It was time to move locations. Unknown to him, it was already too late to flee. The demons were inside the walls already.

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"Interesting..." Sylux murmered, watching the new battle that had begun. He had returned to his sniping position, but found this battle to be too dull to take part in. There were only 15 soldiers left, and maybe less than 100 Krikens, all of which were still firing, the criss-crossing beams of red looking like a web. He focused his attention on the krikens on the Federation base and chuckled as he saw them enter the ventilation shaft. "Don't mind if I do..." he chuckled, flipping into Lockjaw and moving off the ledge he was on. He rapidly placed his Lockjaw bombs, and was propelled a little higher, still falling. He repeated this as fast as he could, the propulsions the bombs provided enabling him to fall slowly towards the base. He barely made it across, returning to biped and using his hands to grip onto the room, pulling himself up. He flipped into Lockjaw again and entered the ventialtion shaft. Time to cause some chaos from the inside...

TO BE CONTINUED...


	13. Invasion part 2

**Ugh...I'm actually into a writing streak, so I couldn't delay another update, even in the hope I'd get reviews. Seriously, I got more reviews in 9 chapters than I did on any story of my trilogy while I was writing it. A pattern shows I get reviews after a DELAY in updates. But, I've been lazy enough, having only 13 chapters in 2 months.**

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Trace landed painlessly next to a venom green Triskelion, which returned to the biped form of his brother. Trace followed suit, returning to biped as well. "You'd think they'd actually have security in ventilation shafts, but I suppose they weren't thinking very strategically when they built this base." Drek muttered, leading Trace out of the ventilation chamber into some form of power generator room.

"Should we knock out the power?" Trace asked, but Drek shook his head.

"Not only would that warn them of our invasion, but there could be locks and other systems that require power to function, which could impede our progress." Drek explained. Trace nodded and they carefully looked around the deserted room. Drek fired his Imperialist, piercing a small security camera. "Let's move on. Fire at will, bro." Drek added, and they exitted the room, emerging in an empty hallway. Trace narrowed his eye.

"No guards?" he muttered.

"Yes, they'd have lots of security guards in this area while there's a war going on outside." Drek replied sarcastically. "Easier for us, no complaints here." They walked briskly through the corridors, Trace pausing to scope, trying to detect heat signals to forewarn them of opponents. They reached a security door without confrontation and Drek easily broke the security password.

"Nice." Trace admired, but Drek shrugged indifferently.

"I taught you all you know about hacking, it's easier when you have years of practice. Servu's pretty good at it too." Drek said as the door slid open. "Careful, there actually will be guards here. Like that one." Drek said calmly firing and killing one soldier at point blank range, before the soldier could react. Trace nodded as they walked down a corridor, reaching a fork.

"I'll take left." Trace said. "What's the objective?" he asked. Drek chuckled.

"We're here for disruption. While the army finishes off the defense teams, we're messing up everything inside, preventing future organization. One thing, the commander must be captured, not killed." Drek said. Trace nodded and hurried down the left path, while Drek took the right.

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Sylux dropped down through the shaft and landed just outside of a power generator room. "Bright side, those krikens will have eliminated most opposition." he mused to himself, withdrawing his Shock Coil regardless. If he encountered any Federation soldiers, or even an officer, he would fry that unfortunate person. He walked down the series of corridors, disappointed that there were no soldiers, dead or alive, anywhere nearby. It wasn't long before he reached a security door, which he noted had its security lock deactivated. He walked through and almost tripped over a dead soldier. So, the krikens had gotten this far. Excellent, at least he was on the right track. He hurried cautiously, but with growing anticipation of a fight, through another hallway, reaching a fork. Left or right?

"I'll choose left. Towards the center of the base, where it's more likely to be several paths, hopefully with lots of weakling soldiers to play with." Sylux thought with relish. He half-ran down the left path. Within a few seconds, he reached another fork. "Damn it..." he muttered, choosing a path at random, the left one again. As he turned another corner, he heard a gasp and whirled towards the sound. A Federation soldier raised his weapon, but Sylux was too quick, firing his Shock Coil, which locked onto the soldier, shocking his with a powerful neutrino stream. Within seconds the guard collapsed, lifelessly. Sylux chuckled. He had almost forgotten how fun that was. He walked futher, entering another corridor. This long hallway had about a dozen Federation troops. He managed to fry two of them before the other 10 noticed.

"Sound the alarm!" One shouted, firing laser shots at Sylux, who dodged the poorly aimed burst easily, approaching the nearest soldier and frying him. Two guards foolishly attempted to tackle him, but he punched one in the face, knocking the fool to the ground. He kicked the other one aside, firing an Imperialist beam at the guard that had tried to activate an alarm panel. No other soldier was within a reasonable distance either to the panel, or to him. There were a few doors off to the sides, leading who knows where, but no one seemed to be thinking of trying to flee, most thinking that they, mere soldiers, could stop Sylux.

"Fools..." Sylux hissed, frying the two soldiers that he had knocked aside. 5 down, 7 to go. "Come and get it!" he sneered, firing an Imperialist at the soldier who was inching towards a door. The soldier fell with only a moan. The other six opened fire with their weapons, but Sylux flipped into Lockjaw, using the absurd speed of the alternate form to dodge the attacks. He set a triangle of bombs around two of the soldiers, savoring their screams of agony as they died. He returned to biped, using his armored fist to knock two more fools to the ground, then turned to the last two, hitting them both with Imperialist beams. Laughing sinisterly, he aimed his Shock Coil at the two he had punched down. "Where's the Commander?" he demanded of them. Both soldiers looked absolutely terrified, their weapons out of reach.

"We don't know, and we sure hell wouldn't tell you if we did!" One yelled bravely. Sylux laughed.

"Oh well..." he said quietly and fried the fool who spoke, waiting until the twitching subsided completely. The remaining soldier let out a strange whimper. "Perhaps you wish to survive...where's the Commander?" he growled.

"I'll never betray him to the likes of you!" the soldier snarled, yanking a hidden laser pistol and firing. Sylux, caught completely off guard, yelled as the beam struck him in the head, momentarily dazing him. Lucky for his suit, or he'd have died. He raised his Shock Coil, but before he could fry the worm, a missile struck him in the chest, knocking him backwards painfully.

"Damn it!" Sylux screamed in rage, glaring at his assailant. Samus stood determinedly at the end of the corridor, calmly flipping the alarm panel. "NO!" Sylux yelled, firing his Imperialist at Samus, who jerked back, the beam piercing the panel, cutting the blaring alarm short. "You'll die!" Sylux snarled, getting back to his feet. The lone surviving soldier fired his pistol again, but Sylux dodged, firing the Imperialist, killing the soldier. Samus fired another missile and Sylux flipped into Lockjaw to avoid it.

"How the hell did you get in here?" Samus said, firing again.

"You didn't notice the war going on, Samus? It's easier than it should be to sneak in!" Sylux retorted, returning to biped. He didn't know why Trace and his brother had invaded the base, but he didn't really care, either. He fired the Shock Coil, but Samus leapt back, out of range of the lock. Indifferent, Sylux fired the Imperialist again, and Samus rolled to the side, firing missiles. Sylux scowled. It was a stalemate right now, neither able to defeat the other.

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Drek continued down the right hand corridor, which he had a feeling would take him near the command room, where messages were delivered to officers to prepare for attacks and defense maneuvers. Pity the Commander rarely ever went into the command area, it'd make the objective easier. Of course, claiming the brain of the Federation's base would simplify the war. There would be other bases, but they would still be unprepared, since the first was the strongest at the time. As he calmly walked towards his destination, he encountered only a handful of guards, killing them without putting any effort into it. 5 guards later, he reached a much more defended region.

"Excellent, I'm getting close." Drek snickered, deactivating another security lock. Immediately inside the door were 3 alert Federation guards. One gasped upon seeing Drek, but the venom kriken moved too fast to react further. He fired his Imperialist, killing the one who gasped, and jabbed the other two with his claws, fatally wounding them as well. He was as skilled at unarmed, close range combat as he was at long range, weapon combat. He walked down a spiral staircase, briefly questioning the sheer idiocy of humans. An attacker could wait on the stairs and strike an unprepared target before being spotted. That's why staircases needed to be straight, not curved or circular. This was proven as a Federation officer appeared ahead, climbing up the stairs. Drek, having noticed the weakness of the stairs, was fully prepared to take advantage of his vantage point, firing his Imperialist, killing the officer, who fell limply down the stairs, but stopped when the body hit the wall. Fools. If the stairs were straight, the body would have fallen to the lobby, alerting other guards of the death, allowing some time to react. As it was, Drek reached the lobby without detection, firing a few more red beams, killing the 3 guards stationed there.

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It was time to go. It was too dangerous to remain here, in the middle of the attack. Samus had gone ahead, just in case of some kriken invaders had broken through the attack. Grater and 4 officers hurried through the corridors, weapons drawn. They didn't expect there to be any threats, but you couldn't be too careful during a war. Especially with enemies just outside the base, engaging in battle with the military forces. The most recent report said that Team C had been well needed reinforcements, and that the extra 50 men had been invaluable, killing several of the kriken attack force. Now there were about 47 Federation troops, none remaining from Team B, and about 60 Krikens still fighting. Grater gasped and they stopped short. Somehow, Sylux had broken into the base, and was fighting Samus. The fight seemed like it was at a stalemate. Abruptly, a beam from behind Sylux lanced forward, striking one of the officers with Grater.

"Trace!" Samus yelled, as the kriken hunter appeared in view.

"Took a wrong turn." Trace muttered, firing again. A second officer fell and Grater and the remaining two backed out of the line of fire. "Well well, Sylux is here already?" Trace said, looking at Sylux curiously. Sylux glared at the kriken.

"Get lost Trace! I'll deal with this!" Sylux snarled. Trace laughed humorlessly.

"We want the Commander alive, you want him dead. I think I won't be backing out of this one." Trace sneered. Grater moaned. Just his luck. "Besides, I assume you got in the same way we did." Trace added coldly and Sylux flinched.

"Your loss. My gain." Sylux replied, ducking another missile from Samus, rolling forward and punching. Samus blocked with one arm, following with a blow with her arm cannon to Sylux's gut. Trace fired his Imperialist, the beam hitting a third officer, who hadn't noticed he had re-entered the line of fire.

"Commander, go! I can't hold them both off forever!" Samus yelled and Grater and the surviving officer hurried forward, rather than to the left, where the battle was taking place. Grater quickly swiped his keycard, opening the security door.

"You can't hold us at all!" Sylux's voice snarled, and Grater turned to see Sylux placing a triangle of bombs around Samus, who leapt away from the deadly combination. Trace's Imperialist struck Samus in the arm and both hunters ran after Grater.

"Shit!" Grater swore, firing both of his laser pistols. Sylux grunted as the beams hit his arm, but Trace's Imperialist flew past Grater's shoulder, hitting the final officer.

"It ends here!" Sylux chuckled firing his Shock Coil. Pain ripped through Grater's body but it vanished moments later. Trace had knocked Sylux aside. Grater scrambled to get away from the kriken, but Trace fired his Imperialist, striking Grater's leg, causing him to collapse, no longer able to support himself on his weakened leg. Samus burst into the corridor, firing missiles at Trace and Sylux. Trace morphed to Triskelion, lunging at Samus. The tight corridor prevented Samus from dodging quickly, and she grunted, sending missiles at the Triskelion. Sylux laughed and fired the Shock Coil again. Pain once more shot through Grater, intensifying with each second.

"Commander!" Samus yelled in horror, punching Sylux from behind, tripped over the Triskelion, which hit her again. Sylux cackled, standing back up and firing the Shock Coil at Samus. Trace returned to biped and fired, Sylux grunting in agony as the beam pierced his armor, causing minor paralysis. Sylux seized a small object and threw it into the air. Samus's attention was diverted to it as it exploded, the force sending both her and Trace about 20 feet away, slamming her into a wall. Trace fired his Imperialist, scrambling to his feet. Sylux rolled aside, mentally screaming in pain and hit Grater with his Shock Coil, as the weakened commander struggled to crawl towards the emergency escape craft, only 50 feet away. Grater screamed in agony, twitching against the intensifying pain.

"Too bad, Commander!" Sylux cackled. It was over this time.

"Damn it!" Trace raged, seeing Grater's twitching subside slightly. He fired his Imperialist, disabling the Shock Coil. Sylux flipped to Lockjaw, which unfortunately was not affected enough by the paralysis. One bomb, then a second, forming a tripwire next to Grater, who was struggling to stand. Samus could only watch in horror as Sylux placed the third, creating the Triangle Bomb. The triangle of electricity closed in on Grater, who let out a yell, and collapsed lifelessly. The metallic green orb floated away, and Samus clenched her fists in fury, getting back to her feet. Trace scowled furiously and ran after Sylux. Samus raced over to the fallen commander. There was no question that he was dead. Regardless of her dislike for her commander, it was still saddening to relaize that she had failed to save him. He was another casuality of a war that should never have happened.

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Sylux managed to escape to his ship without further encounters. He was in no condition to fight, although the paralysis had worn off. He stopped, puzzled a moment. Another message was waiting for him. He read it quickly. "Meet me at the Destiny Station. We have issues to discuss. Congrats on finishing Grater. It was destined to occur." Sylux checked the time the message was sent and gasped. It had been sent several minutes before Sylux had even encountered Grater. How was that possible?

"Meet with this person could prove to be interesting..." Sylux murmured, setting a course for the unknown Destiny Station. He had never heard of it, but the message had enclosed coordinates, which he fed to his autopilot. "Let's see what he knows..." Sylux said with a small smile.


	14. Completing the Mission

"Hey, Spire. I think there's been a problem." Noxus reported. Spire's image appeared, looking puzzled.

"Why do you think that? What sort of problem?" Spire asked.

"Well, I have intercepted a few off-planet reports. Useful for collecting evidence on evildoers and all that. One just came in and said that the Kriken Emperor and the Kriken Overlord were assassinated." Noxus replied seriously. The reason this struck him as odd was because the Kriken leaders were supposedly the most skilled and well defended krikens in the entire Empire.

"That's a good thing. Makes the Empire crumble from within, least until a new Emperor is chosen, and during a war, that could take a while. Ordinarily the Overlord would act as temporary..." Spire began.

"How the hell do you know about kriken politics?" Noxus interrupted. Spire laughed.

"It was interesting to wonder how an empire functions." Spire replied. "Besides, maybe they'll withdraw from the war."

"Fat chance." a familar voice hissed, and Kanden's image appeared. Spire yelled in shock, and Kanden chuckled malevolently.

"Kanden." Noxus said coldly.

"Name hasn't changed. Besides, I haven't done a thing in this war. Weavel won't send anymore troops into battle for some reason, and the Krikens and Federation are in their own little battle right now." Kanden explained briefly.

"Well, that brings us up to date. We haven't done anything either. It's like a videogame..." Spire began, but Kanden and Noxus both groaned.

"No more videogame references! Drek nearly killed you for overdoing them last time!" Noxus yelled. "And that was in a life or death battle!"

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Drek continued walking through the lower basement of the base. The command center, according to Drek's extensive research, should be nearby. Other than those lobby guards, there didn't seem to be anyone around. All the better, since it made the probability of detection minimal. He walked down the last corridor, smirking. It was over for the Federation. He knew they'd probably have begun evacuating a while ago, upon knowing they'd lose the battle. Humans, despite their stupidity, at least had survival instincts. He reached the doorway to the command room, which was smaller than most command rooms in his experience. Several Federation technicians worked on computers while about half a dozen officers stood, speaking into communication devices.

"Shit." one officer muttered. "Commander Grater was been killed!" he yelled. There was a great deal of shocked muttering among the technicians and other officers.

"Just not your day, is it?" Drek asked from the doorway, firing the Imperialist. The beam hit the security alarm, destroying it. The officers stared in horror, all being unarmed. There were no soldiers, and it appeared like the entire command center was defenseless, but Drek wasn't going to lower his guard. Venom krikens were usually overconfident and died because of a momentary weakness. Drek was not one to make such fatal errors.

"Who the hell are you?" one officer spat angrily. Drek chuckled, glancing quickly around the room to ensure there were no hidden weapons.

"Everyone move to that side of the room. Cooperate and you're in no danger." Drek said calmly. "Your commander was not killed by a kriken. We wanted him alive." he said, scowling slightly. That made him wonder briefly who the assassin was. As the captured officers and technicians moved to the side of the room, Drek studied one of the computers. "Ah here we go..." he said gleefully, typing a string of commands.

"That'll be all. I suggest getting out of the base. The army's about to bomb this place to cinders." Drek added, leaving the room. He heard the officers curse, and chuckled as he ran back towards the main floor. His objective was complete. The anti-aircraft turrets were disabled and the command room's password was changed, preventing any commands or changes from being made. Therefore, the entire base was an easy target.

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"Damn Sylux!" Trace cursed, running after the hunter. He knew he wouldn't catch him, but he had to try. The commander was dead, and the objective failed. Hopefully, Drek had accomplished his objective, so the mission wasn't a complete waste. Trace sighed after a minute or two. He had no idea where Sylux went.

"Hey bro. Mission accomplished. I know the commander's dead." Drek said through Trace's communication device. Trace flinched. He had forgotten all about that, he normally never had anyone to contact.

"Sylux did it. He followed us in." Trace reported, heading for the base exit. Drek chuckled from his end.

"No surprise there. The base is worthless now. I already told the troops to withdraw and prepare for a bombardment." Drek said. Trace nodded to himself, firing the Imperialist to strike a guard ahead of him. "See you soon." Drek said, ending the communication. Within another minute, Trace reached the exit, glancing around quickly. Drek appeared from a different corridor, slightly surprised to see Trace already there.

"That was fast." Trace said, smirking. Drek chuckled and they exitted the base. "Wow, tough battle or something?" Trace asked sarcastically. Almost every Federation trooper was wounded or dead. There were only 15 still alive, but they were oblivious to the krikens.

"Leave them. They're the lucky ones." Drek said indifferently, leading Trace up towards the mountain again. Trace followed in silence. From what he could tell, 50 Krikens remained alive. So 85 Federation dead compared to the 100 Krikens dead. Not terrible, but not very good, either. Drek didn't seem too concerned. "We knew we'd take heavy casualties in this battle. Despite the Federation having the disadvantage, not all kriken troops are talented with the Imperialist. They aren't elites, just normal trained." Drek explained, signalling his Kriken Force III. They boarded, leaving for the Kriken base. Trace finished up a quick report on the battle for the Emperor and Overlord. The shock was yet to come.

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Weavel chuckled slightly as he examined the report about the Federation vs the Kriken battle. As that yellow kriken had told him, the Federation had been destroyed from the inside. The commander had been killed, and also, he had received a report that the Kriken Emperor and Overlord had both been killed as well. So everything was true so far. The Empire and Federation were both crippled by the death of their leaders. The only Federation leader remaining in the war was the Admiral, and with his death, the war was over in favor of the Space Pirates. There'd still be resistance, and the krikens would still fight. However, they'd be far weaker without a strategic leader. It was almost too good to be true.

"General Weavel, we have received word that the Federation Admiral has been spotted in the area. Your orders?" the pirate officer asked, entering the room. Weavel turned to face him, laughing.

"Nothing yet. The Federation army is almost obliterated, and the krikens will soon be encountering a political difficulty. We've won with only 100 lost pirates." Weavel said. He could almost picture his glory as the ultimate general in a war against the Space Pirates' two greatest foes.

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Admiral Alan Lyte sighed. He heard that his brother, Frank Lyte, was one of the few survivors of the first battle. He had taken a risk to meet with his brother. The years of military service had taken its toll on both Lyte brothers, and he didn't want to lose his brother to battle. Admiral Lyte had approved the action of the defensive war, but that was before he heard the Space Pirates had joined in. Krikens were a threat to the peace of the universe, but had he known the Space Pirates were going to join, he probably wouldn't have agreed.

"You learn from your mistakes, I suppose." Admiral Lyte muttered. He sent a communication to Commander Grater, and to his alarm, Samus answered.

"Samus Aran." Samus reported. There was a strange tone in the bounty hunter's voice. Lyte paused a moment before responding.

"Ah, Miss Aran. This is Admiral Lyte. Where is Commander Grater?" he asked. There was a long pause, and Lyte's mind began to fret. What had happened?

"I'm sorry Admiral, but Commander Grater was killed by Sylux." Samus said solemnly. Lyte gasped. He had not expected Sylux to have been involved.

"Is Lieutenant Lyte around?" Admiral Lyte asked.

"He's not around, but he's alive. He left the base a few minutes ago. We're evacuating." Samus replied.

"Thank you, Miss Aran." the Admiral closed the communication. Almost immediately afterwards, there was a sudden explosion and the Admiral turned to see a strange, cloaked figure enter the ship. "Who the hell are you?" the Admiral demanded. The figure chuckled.

"Admiral? Your security needs so much more work. Only 20 guards? I've seen tougher bugs, Quite literally." The figure lowered the hood of the cloak to reveal the figure to be a red kriken, but with a yellow eye. The Admiral stared in surprised recognition.

"Servu..." the admiral whispered. Servu laughed.

"Indeed. Now either surrender, or I'll have to use force!" Servu sneered. Admiral Lyte was unarmed and had no weapons available. "You're wanted alive, for reasons I don't know, but don't care." Servu leveled his Imperialist at the Admiral.

"Fine." Admiral Lyte said sadly. His thoughts were on his brother, and the 20 guards that had lost their lives for doing their job. Servu chuckled and smashed his weapon into the Admiral's head, and darkness closed in quickly.

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Trek approached the Destiny Station. Before long, Servu would bring the Admiral, and Sylux would arrive. He studied the next card and chuckled. So it wasn't just the Admiral that was important. The next target was another Federation soldier, but which one was unclear. "Everything reveals itself in time. It's just a matter of recognizing the signs..." Trek mused, reshuffling the tarot deck, landing the Kriken Force I in his personal docking bay and walking down the corridor to his 'office'. As expected, it was empty. His message to Servu must have been received. He chuckled and laid his deck on the desk, considering the information that the cards had provided.

"It won't be long now. The war is already winding down. Rather than the loss of thousands in pointless battles, I managed to control the factors. The Space Pirates have temporarily withdrawn, the Empire is crumbling, and the Federation is soon to suffer the same fate. A few more matters to clear up first, and the war will end." Trek snickered.

**Not as exciting as previous chapters, but the later chapters are going to be intense.**


	15. Clearing up Matters

Servu chuckled as he landed the Kriken Force II in the Destiny Station's docking bay. He grabbed the unconscious Admiral and carried the officer towards Trek's office. Why the yellow kriken wanted the Admiral alive was a mystery to Servu, but Servu wasn't too bothered just yet. Soon, he would ascend the throne and be known as the greatest kriken alive. Past defeats would mean nothing. Trek was waiting for him, calmly shuffling the tarot deck.

"You've arrived, and all went well." Trek said softly, glancing at the Admiral, who Servu tossed to the ground dismissively. "The guest will be arriving soon. We need him to complete the destruction of the Federation. With the Federation taken care of, the Space Pirates will then back off of the Empire, and you can take the throne." Trek continued. Servu smirked, which vanished as he saw Sylux enter the room.

"What the hell?" Sylux yelled. Servu raised his Imperialist but Trek held up a claw to stop him.

"You've arrived at last, Sylux. I once more offer my congratulations for your success on eliminating the commander. There's only a few more things to clear up." Trek said. Sylux stared at him.

"Who are you?" Sylux demanded. Trek laughed and Servu flinched. That laugh was really creepy.

"My name is Trek. A former member of the Kriken Empire and one of Servu's fellow trainees. However, my true abilities lie in divination. I can predict the future, and to date, I've never been wrong." Trek replied.

"What do you want?" Sylux snapped. Trek smirked eeriely.

"In case you are unaware, this war was started by me. You wish to assist in the devastation of the Galactic Federation, and this war is the first step. The military is weakened, and both leaders have been dealt with. The Admiral of the Federation is right there. There are two things standing in the way of the Federation's destruction. One is Samus Aran..." Trek said, revealing a card of the tarot deck. Sylux stared at it blankly.

"The Hero." Servu muttered.

"Indeed. This card represents Samus' soul. The second...is this: Blood Ties! This card refers to a relative of the leader, and also our next target. Finish off him, and the Federation will almost completely crumble. The former Admiral is Alan Lyte, according to his ID. So his blood ties must be a survivor." Trek explained, holding up a third card. "This 'Survivor' card refers not only literally to a survivor, but it represents the person with the Blood Ties."

"Who would that be?" Sylux demanded, barely able to understand a word the yellow kriken had said during the entire conversation. Did he always talk in riddles mixed with some weird pieces of cardboard?

"Yes, I do. No, I cant read minds. The person would be the only other survivor of the first battle. A man by the name of Frank Lyte. Only 2 survived that fight. Samus Aran and Frank Lyte. Sylux, your thirst for vengeance can finally be quenched. Capture Frank Lyte. He is destined to be the next Admiral, and he is destined to revive the Federation, should he survive." Trek said coldly.

"Why don't I simply kill him?" Sylux asked seriously. Servu blinked. It would make more sense than capture. Trek chuckled.

"If Frank Lyte is killed, Samus will hunt the killer, and she will catch up to you and kill you. If he is captured, she will follow and arrive here. Then you can kill her. Afterwards, the Federation is yours to destroy, piece by piece." Trek said, studying a few more cards. "Trust me, the small change will impact your life. Here, she will die to you. Elsewhere, you will die to her." Trek said with a laugh.

"So I do this and get the chance to destroy the Federation? What if I don't?" Sylux challenged. Trek laughed again.

"It's your choice, but you know what choice you'll make." Trek said softly. Sylux nodded and turned to leave.

"Very well." Sylux said quietly, exitting the room. Servu glanced at Trek in confusion.

"I don't get it. What's going on?" he asked. Trek flipped a card.

"Simple. Sylux is needed for the Endgame...the ultimate result." Trek said. "Can't have him dying before that time comes." This did nothing to end Servu's puzzlement.

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Samus reached her ship with a sigh. The Federation was being forced to flee, and the death of Grater had struck a powerful blow to the morale of the troops. Sylux had gotten away, although that was to be expected. As she took off, she sent a message to Admiral Lyte. She didn't know where to go next, and with the commander's death, she didn't know who was her new temporary commanding officer. However, there was no response to her call.

"That's odd...he called me not that long ago." Samus muttered. She took the time to examine recent reports on the wa and paused at one. "Kriken leaders murdered?" she read quietly. This was rather unusual. The Kriken leaders were the best defended, and to her knowledge there were no attack forces after the krikens at this time. Who would have the skill and ability to break into a kriken base and kill the two strongest leaders in the Empire?

"Hey Samus!" Noxus' voice said abruptly. Samus sighed. Why did Noxus and Spire insist on contacting her at weird times?

"Hey Noxus." Samus said unenthusiastically.

"Samus, you hear about the Kriken murders?" Spire asked. Samus sighed and nodded.

"I'm trying to get in contact with the Federation Admiral, my commander died and the Federation had to retreat. Sylux killed him." Samus explained briefly. There was a moment of stunned silence.

"So both armies had their leaders murdered? I doubt Sylux is behind the Kriken murders...but who could it be?" Noxus asked seriously. "I can try to figure out some information about Sylux." the Vhozon added. Samus nodded.

"This seems too convenient. A war starts under mysterious circumstances, and now the leaders of the krikens and Federation are killed, despite high security. Something has to be going on that we don't know." Samus said seriously.

"You think someone would have noticed though." Spire pointed out. Samus paused.

"Maybe someone did notice, the Space Pirate leader didn't die." she said.

"Weavel's the leader." Noxus said. "Kanden's allied with him, I think."

"This isn't enough information. Kanden expressed being bored for not doing anything. Sylux would attack the Federation. We have no clue who'd attack the Krikens." Spire said.

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Frank Lyte flew his small ship towards the Federation rendezvous point. The only danger was its proximity to an eerie space station that looked like it had been abandoned for years, and also a few Space Pirate patrols. Frank sighed. Samus had informed him that Grater had been killed by Sylux, and Frank needed to contact his brother, the Admiral. The war had gone on too long, and it had barely begun. Only the Admiral could give the order to withdraw, until a new commander was chosen. Suddenly, his radar flashed red. Frank stared at the radar in horror. A Space Pirate patrol? A burst of plasma hit the ship, and Frank gasped. It wasn't a Space Pirate ship. It was different...the Delano 8.

"It's Sylux!" Frank muttered. Another plasma burst hit the engine systems, disabling them. Frank slammed his fists on his computer console. He knew it wasn't actually going to help, but it released some anger. Wait, Sylux had disabled the ship rather than destroy it? That meant an attempt to capture. Why would Sylux capture a Federation soldier? Suddenly, the radar bleeped again. "What now?" Frank moaned. 3 Space Pirate ships appeared nearby.

Frank couldn't believe it...his luck today was awful. If you count surviving to die later awful, anyway. The Space Pirates focused their fire on the Delano, but Frank wasn't concerned with how much longer it was going to stay that way. He frantically searched the ship for some method to escape, but nothing appeared. His luck had run out.

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Sylux scowled. Space Pirates interfering? He couldn't have that, now could he? The key to defeating the Federation was not going to be taken away by those filthy pirates! He quickly activated his missile cannons. "Farewell scum!" He snarled, firing 3 missiles at the Space Pirate crafts. Unfortunately, only one of the missiles successfully hit the target, the ship exploding in a small fireball. The other two dodged the missiles, firing their energy weapons at the Delano 8.

"Taste the fear!" Sylux hissed, sending another missile. The pirates dodged, but one collided with the disabled ship. Sylux stared in shocked horror for a moment. Both crafts exploded in a large fireball. Sylux let out a scream of curses that even the most vile Space Pirates never heard before. "You'll die for that!" he spat, firing a plasma burst, shattering the last Space Pirate ship.

"Accursed Pirates! You'll pay for this..." Sylux snarled furiously.

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Weavel sat in his General office and chuckled. Thanks to a message from Trek, he managed to locate the Federation rendezvous and send a small squad to eliminate surviving soldiers from the carnage the krikens inflicted to the Federation base. The war truly was winding down, and the Federation was at a loss. Weavel snickered. He still didn't know why Trek was helping them fight the Federation as well as the Empire, but he wasn't concerned by this helpfulness. It would lead to him being the ultimate General, enabling him to reclaim his fame!

**Happy New Year! Even if you read this before midnight.**


	16. The Ultimate General

**Time for another update.**

Servu glanced at Trek in confusion. "What happened?" he demanded of the yellow kriken, who was chuckling while examining 3 cards.

"Sylux failed. Ths visual should have shown it all. I wasn't looking, but I know it happened." Trek replied calmly, replacing the 3 cards. Servu caught sight of one of them.

"You tricked him, didn't you?" Servu whispered. "One of those cards was the Betrayal." he added quickly. Trek laughed.

"Trick? It was no trick. It was destiny. He was destined to fail that task. If he had simply killed the soldier, he wouldnt hold a new vendetta against the Space Pirates. The point of the vendetta is to keep him alive. If I tell him not to enter battle, he will recklessly enter battle and die. With this vendetta, he will not only weaken the Space Pirate defensive, but he will live long enough for the Endgame." Trek replied calmly.

"What's the Endgame?" Servu asked, puzzled. Trek smirked eeriely.

"The ultimate result is termed the Endgame. The desired result is the Rise of the Empire. So when the Endgame card appears, that time has come." Trek said with absolute seriousness.

"When do I ascend the throne?" Servu demanded abruptly. This question had been bugging him for a while, ever since he completed the task of eliminating the leaders.

"The war is coming to a close. The Empire is slowly crumbling, and as long as the Federation and Space Pirates are a threat, they cannot select a new Emperor. It's time I entered the war personally." Trek mused. Servu stared at him incredulously.

"If memory serves, you couldn't use an Imperialist to save your life." Servu mocked. Trek ignored him.

"Correct, Servu. However, I was very skilled at close range combat." Trek replied. Servu scoffed dismissively. "Do not underestimate your foes, Servu. It will be your undoing." Trek said.

"You aren't using your cards, does that mean you're just saying that randomly?" Servu snickered. Trek smiled.

"It's a fact determined from your personality and arrogance. I can see into the soul as well as the future. Your card is the Skeptic! You consider yourself so above others you don't consider the threats that can be concealed! The Veiled Threat!" Trek said, revealing a card from the middle of the deck.

"How the hell did you do that?" Servu yelled.

"The Veiled Threat is a unique card. It is meaningless if at the surface, but it warns of a hidden danger within the deck." Trek said solemnly. "Beware your feelings and thoughts. They deceive you, Servu." Trek said, glancing at the top tarot card and then shuffling the Veiled Threat card into the deck.

"Now what?" Servu asked coldly. Trek smirked again.

"The Empire is an ally, but in their weakened state they cannot organize an attack. The Federation is slowly withering, without organization, the final assault will finish the job. The Space Pirates are far better organized, with Weavel as the General. The ultimate General." Trek said.

"Ok, what the hell does that even mean?" Servu demanded. Trek chuckled.

"You never learn, do you? No matter." Trek muttered. He turned and entered the hidden door behind the desk. "I have a meeting to attend to." he hissed.

"What about the Admiral?" Servu asked hopefully. Trek chuckled.

"His only use was to ensure he wouldn't be able to contact Federation forces. While his death could do the same thing, I can't determine his significance if he's dead. He has no futher purpose, and the Blood Ties card is upside down. There are no more suitable candidates for Admiral during the course of the war. At least give him his chance to fight if you plan to kill him." Trek replied. The wall panel closed. Servu smirked slightly.

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Weavel smirked. The Federation was doomed. The latest report announced that the Federation rendezvous base was destroyed and another 200 soldiers had been killed. There were no known surviving soldiers from previous battles, since the Kriken forces had eliminated the first base and all survivors. Rumors said that the Kriken army had taken prisoners of the unarmed technicians.

"I suppose, if the leaders died, you may as well keep prisoners before getting a new leader and deciding their fate." Weavel said to himself. He blinked briefly as he received a message. "Oh good, that kriken's coming again. About time." he muttered.

"A funny thing about time, General Weavel, is that it eventually runs out. In this case, time is running out for the Federation." Trek hissed as he entered the room. Weavel smirked slightly.

"Correct. According to my data, the Federation doesn't have the organization or manpower to continue the war. All they'd have to do is officially surrender." Weavel said.

"Samus Aran will never surrender, General. She's the last one standing in the way of the Federation's destruction. Don't worry...the war is almost over." Trek replied. Weavel nodded, scowling slightly. "The Krikens are more leader based, and without a leader, they will withdraw from the war. They cannot get a new leader until there are no more threats." Trek explained briefly.

"So they're an easy target?" Weavel asked coldly.

"They would be. However, the cards revealed the course of destiny." Trek said laying 3 cards on the table, all facedown. Weavel stared at Trek skeptically. Trek smirked. "This is all very real, General. The first card: The Rise of the Empire, upside down. As you may know, upside down is the reverse. So it symbolizes an Empire's falling." he said, revealing the card.

"That's good." Weavel said, but Trek smirked.

"Forgive me, you misunderstand. This isn't predicting the future of the Kriken Empire, but of the Space Pirates. The second card explains the trigger, the third is the event that starts the trigger. Ready? The second card is the Black Kriken...upside down. The death of the leader." Trek said, smirking at Weavel.

"So if I die, the Space Pirates will lose?" Weavel scoffed dismissively. Trek nodded.

"Of course, knowing the course of destiny allows it to be changed. The third card says what causes the death of the leader. Ah...I thought as much. The Eternal Shield, upside down. The Eternal Shield symbolizes defenses, and it being upside down symbolizes the removal of such defenses. Trust can be quite the weapon, eh Weavel. By the way, did I mention 'Ultimate' refers to last?" Trek asked, slamming his fist into Weavel's face. Weavel jerked back, falling off his chair.

"What the hell?" Weavel snarled, seizing his energy sword. It pulsed with energy as he activated it. "You tricked me!" he snapped. Trek chuckled and made a 'come on' gesture.

"It's a trick, but it was necessary. The Empire will never fall to the likes of you, 'General'. I'll match your weapon!" Trek mocked, throwing his cloak aside and revealing an energy blade as well, which pulsed with red energy, unlike Weavel's yellow.

"How did you customize your energy color?" Weavel demanded curiously. Trek smirked.

"What does it matter? Soon you'll be dead!" Trek sneered, twirling his blade expertly. Weavel scowled. They stared at each other for a minute before Trek grew tired of staring and blinked a few times. "Come on, General. You can't win by staring alone!" Trek mocked.

Weavel lunged forward, swinging the blade downwards, but Trek countered easily, kicking Weavel in the chest with his foot. Weavel staggered back, and Trek used his momentary imbalance to get under Weavel's guard, scoring a glancing blow to Weavel's arm. "ARGH! You'll die!" Weavel raged, swinging his blade with all his force. Trek ducked and Weavel's momentum knocked the Space Pirate leader off balance once more. Trek slashed quickly, catching Weavel in the back. Weavel yelled, falling to the ground, his Power suit smoking from the blow.

"Destiny predicts your death. It's inevitable." Trek said calmly, his demeanor completely unfazed. "You may want to focus on surviving, because your offense is too reckless." Trek added. Trek chuckled as Weavel staggered back to his feet. "Let's press on." Trek said, stepping forward and slashing his blade at Weavel's chest, but Weavel parried, shoving the blade away. His second of triumph was short-lived, as Trek swung his blade at a different angle. Weavel jerked back, pushing Trek's blade away. He was half trapped between the table and a computer console, preventing him from moving out of the way.

"I'm not finished yet!" Weavel snarled, swinging his blade to counterattack, but Trek leapt out of range, landing on the table and jabbing his blade down. Weavel panicked briefly, swinging his sword in a desperate attempt to block. While successful in stopping the blow, it lacked the power to push it away significantly, the blade barely missing Weavel's body.

"Without proper focus, your weapon lacks the power to counter the attack, merely redirect its path, putting you at risk of an attack like this." Trek said, kicking Weavel in the face. The stunned Space Pirate slumped against the computer and Trek jabbed again. Weavel rolled out of the way just in time, sparks flying as the blade slid across the computer, which was luckily protected against damage. Weavel got back to his feet, facing the yellow kriken.

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Sylux flew the Delano 8 towards the Space Pirate base. He wouldn't bother with a personal assault, he'd just blow the damn base to pieces. They messed up his goals, he'd return to favor. Afterwards, he'd return to finish the job with the Federation. Then he'd take out Samus. His task would be complete at last. He armed his missiles as he approached the base. There were a few Space Pirate anti-aircraft guns, but a few bursts of plasma dealt away with them easily. He fired two missiles, grinning as they struck the pirate base, creating massive explosions. Not enough firepower to completely destroy the base, but it did severe damage.

"Excellent start. Now to finish the job!" Sylux sneered, firing plasma bursts at various areas of the base while he waited for his missiles to reload. After a few small explosions, he fired the missiles again, this time closer to the center of the base, rather than the entrance. He laughed to himself as that portion of the base collapsed. The shockwaves created by the missiles caused additional destruction.

"Almost done, almost done..." Sylux murmured with a chuckle. He aimed his final missiles and fired them into the rear of the base. The explosions and shockwaves caused the majority of the base to collapse. Sylux felt the savage glee as he surveyed the damage. Some pirates may survive, but it hardly mattered to him. "Shouldn't have messed up my business!" he laughed, turning his ship away from the scene.

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Weavel gasped slightly as the first shockwave shook the building. Trek was unsurprised, spinning the deadly red blade in one claw. "What the hell is going on?" Weavel hissed. Trek chuckled.

"That would be the second trick. Your troops killed a Federation soldier that Sylux was hunting and wanted alive. This is revenge!" Trek said calmly. Weavel looked stunned and Trek swung his blade, but Weavel countered, even as another shockwave ripped through the building. Trek kicked his foot out again, striking Weavel's hand, the yellow blade flying into the air. Trek jabbed his sword forward, striking Weavel in the midsection, severing several critical nerves in the cybernetic pirate. He then calmly caught the falling energy blade with his left claw.

"Damn..." Weavel gasped in agony, most of the reconstructured body paralyzed by the jab. Another shockwave, stronger this time shook the building. Part of the ceiling cracked. Weavel struggled to remain standing.

"You can't escape destiny, Weavel. You are the ultimate general, but because your empire has fallen. Too bad you didn't see the threat." Trek said, turning away calmly.

"You can't leave me like this!" Weavel protested. Trek stopped and turned back to Weavel.

"That's true." he said slowly, then threw Weavel's energy sword across the room, where it stabbed Weavel's chest. Weavel gasped, clutching the sword's hilt before falling to the ground lifelessly. "Destiny is served, pirate." Trek said calmly, following the hallway back to his ship. He took off just as another pair of shockwaves forced the rest of the building to collapse.


	17. Vengeance part 1

Noxus quickly examined his computer screen. He had a very expensive system that allowed him to intercept all outgoing messages, which was helpful for tracking his targets, as these messages often gave hints as to the wherabouts of the targets. This was how he managed to collect so many battle reports almost immediately after they were sent. Right now, he was looking for Sylux.

"Anything yet?" Samus asked him, and Noxus sighed in reply.

"Not yet. Mostly garbage messages. Then again, Sylux is infamous for working alone, and he probably wouldn't send messages to anyone." Noxus said. He paused as a new interceted message came up.

"It can't be...the Space Pirate headquarters was just attacked!" Noxus reported. Both Samus and Spire gasped in disbelief. "The attacker, according to the few survivors, was Sylux! Weavel was in the base, and his survival is at the moment uncertain." Noxus said, after he finished reading.

"Where is the base?" Samus asked. Noxus gave her the coordinates and Samus studied them. "Not that far from the Federation rendezvous. What happened there?" she asked Noxus, who brought up the records of previous reports.

"Complete devastation, caused by Space Pirate attack waves." Noxus said after a moment. "No known survivors." he said after another moment.

"The Federation is crumbling, the Kriken Empire is weakened, and the Space Pirates just took a heavy blow. Something doesn't add up." Spire said gravely. "These can't be mere coincidences that 3 powerful groups were warned of a war, and then destroyed so easily. Something else is behind this somehow." Spire continued.

"Let's look at the clues." Samus said carefully. "We've confirmed that the Federation was told of the Krikens' planned attack. The Krikens were informed of the Federation's planned attack. That already reeks of a setup, since the only reason there were planned attacks was because of the other being told of it. The Space Pirates were warned somehow and got involved, catching the Federation by surprise." Samus finished.

"Then, the Krikens attacked the Federation immediately after the first attack by the Pirates, when the Federation was weakest. The Federation Commander was killed by Sylux, who escaped. Soon afterwards, you lose contact with the Federation Admiral. Also, both Kriken leaders are assassinated. We can't trace anyone to that attack. Lastly, the Space Pirates eliminate most of the remaining Federation forces, and Sylux destroys the Space Pirate base." Spire continued.

"Sylux never attacked the Empire...but the Space Pirates never attacked the Empire either. All the attacks seem focused on the Federation, and the most recent focused on the Space Pirates. However, the Kriken leaders were still killed." Samus mused.

"So is the person behind this an ally or a foe to the Empire?" Noxus asked.

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Drek landed the Kriken Force III at the Kriken base. As he and Trace exitted the ship, Drek shuddered slightly. "What's wrong?" Trace asked, concerned. Drek paused a moment.

"I'm not sure. There's just a strange feeling...something's not right." he said slowly. Trace shrugged, but readied his Imperialist all the same. Drek's instincts were rarely wrong. They entered the base and Drek blinked in surprise. Trace saw what was wrong almost immediately. First of all, there were a few very anxious guards around. Second, there were a few dead bodies.

"What happened?" Trace yelled to the air. Several glances were exchanged. "Where's the Overlord?" Trace asked, annoyed by the lack of response.

"You didn't hear?" One guard replied angrily. Drek's emerald eye narrowed slightly.

"Hear what? What's going on?" Drek replied curtly. The guard smirked slightly.

"The Overlord and Emperor were murdered." the guard said coldly. Drek flinched. No fool would lie about such an event, so it must be true.

"How?" Drek asked, a trace of anger in his voice, however that was the only sign of any emotion.

"Look for yourself." the guard said dismissively. Trace and Drek paused and examined the two bodies briefly. Trace noticed the wounds were small, precise and circular. Imperialist wounds.

"A traitor...or just an assassin with an Imperialist?" Trace murmured.

"Traitor. These two were hit by a blunt object first, and the only way that's possible is either the attacker was a kriken, or the attacker was behind the guards without them noticing. Considering the high security, only a kriken could have been behind the guards without a reaction." Drek replied seriously. Trace nodded. His brother always was better at noticing small details.

"Where were the others killed?" Trace asked the guard, who pointed to the passage to the left.

"Conference room 3." he grunted. Drek led Trace down to the area, silently noting the guard just within the security chamber, who had also been shot with an Imperialist. They reached the conference room and entered, Drek using the security code to unlock the door. Trace gasped involuntarily. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting but not the sight before him.

"4 elite guards killed, one who is missing an Imperialist. The Emperor was killed with an Imperialist, but was using a Pirate Blade weapon. There is a second pirate blade weapon, probably from a disarmed opponent. I know of no krikens other than the Emperor who uses a Space Pirate energy blade." Drek said quietly, a trace of confusion.

"That one's simple. The Emperor uses 2 energy blade weapons. This scorch mark on the wall looks like an energy blade was thrown. The attacker could have tried to attack using it and got disarmed." Trace pointed out. Drek nodded thoughtfully. "Further proof is the Emperor was killed with an Imperialist. According to the wounds, the attacker killed using an Imperialist, but I'm betting his or her regular Imperialist was damaged, otherwise the attacker wouldn't have stolen one of the guard's weapons." Trace added.

"Not a bad deduction. We still don't know who could have done it." Drek said, leading Trace back towards the entrance. "It would have to be a kriken of incredible skill to have accomplished this attack. Someone with knowledge of kriken military defenses." Drek mused quietly. The guards looked at them expectantly as they approached.

"Any clues?" the guard asked.

"Plenty. Not enough to know for sure, but we'll look into it. Curious. Who is next in line to inherit the throne?" Drek asked. The guard paused, thinking.

"Check the official records." he said after a moment. Drek nodded and Trace followed him back to his ship. Within a few moments, Drek had taken off while Trace searched the records.

"Drek...there are 3 candidates at this time. You, Servu, and...an exiled yellow male." Trace said and Drek looked at him strangely.

"Exiled yellow male? How many of those do you run across?" Drek said seriously. "What's the deal with that guy?" he asked.

"His name is Trek, and he was the Emperor's advisor. He was exiled when he predicted the Emperor would get assassinated." Trace continued, examining the record. Drek chuckled.

"Ah, that weirdo. Didn't you train with him in the academy or whatever?" Drek asked. Trace paused, not positive. "The guy with the cards." Drek added.

"Oh, yeah, I remember him now. He was a freak." Trace said. Drek chuckled again.

"Why is he a candidate?" Drek asked after a few seconds. "Exiles are allowed to ever return."

"The record of his prediction. Unless proven to have a hand in the death, his name would be cleared and he can return to the Empire. Although seriously, I could predict someone's death and once it happens, does that mean my prediction came true?" Trace said dismissively.

"Technically, yes. However, I remember that this Trek guy, although a major weirdo, was actually very accurate. He claimed to be able to see the future, which is how he got the position in the first place. Don't think he was taken too seriously though." Drek said thoughtfully.

"What are you saying?" Trace asked in confusion.

"Well, since his predictions are so accurate, he would be perfect for restoring the Empire to its original glory, but he's not a strong leader. Other krikens would never accept him as a long term leader." Drek said. "It would just be a matter of time before some idiot would overthrow him, and disaster could strike again. Plus, no offense to yellow males, but black and venom krikens are powerful symbols. A yellow male Emperor would be a mockery to the Empire in most eyes." Drek continued.

"But you don't want to be Emperor either. You hate politics. So that would leave the throne to Servu." Trace protested. Drek nodded solemly.

"I wouldn't like that anymore than you would, bro." Drek said seriously.

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Kanden exitted his ship at the ruins of the Space Pirate base. He had to know if Weavel survived! He crawled quickly over the ruins, searching for the life signal of his ally. He had intercepted Noxus' transmission about the attack on the base, but he was suspicious for a different reason. He just had the strange feeling that the base was destroyed to conceal something, as improbable as it seemed. Finally, he reached the area where Weavel's regular command area was and began shifting rocks and other debris, looking for the cybernetic Space Pirate's body. The energy signal that Kanden had been tracking was very close and after another few minutes of shifting the debris, he located the battered body.

"Weavel?" Kanden called, hoping that the Pirate had survived. He was one of the closer things he had to a friends, despite their occasional dislike of each other. He had been devoid of friends since his mutation so long ago. He quickly examined Weavel, and scowled with rage. There was an energy sword buried in Weavel's chest, positioned a few inches above a nasty wound in Weavel's midsection.

Kanden pulled the sword free, deactivating the energy flow, the yellow blade no longer glowing. Weavel was unmistakably dead, whatever procedure had been used to recover his near-dead form the first time was impossible to repeat. Even if it could be repeated, Weavel would be paralyzed, as too much of his nervous system had been destroyed. Plus, from what Kanden had been told, Weavel had been barely alive the first time, and here he was already dead.

"Who did this...?" Kanden growled venomously. He noticed the faint glow of the near by computer console, and walked to it. Surprisingly, it had survived the destruction inflicted by Sylux. There was one recent message. Kanden read it quickly:

"_Weavel, it is time for us to meet once more. You will be the ultimate general soon. Be there soon, signed, Trek. Sent from Destiny Station_." Kanden scowled in rage. Somehow, he knew that this 'Trek' was the killer, and he would avenge the death. He was the strongest bounty hunter, afterall, and now he would prove it. He returned to his ship, the _Poison_. The Destiny Station wasn't far from here, and he would be there shortly to get revenge.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	18. Vengeance part 2

Admiral Lyte groaned and opened his eyes, staring briefly around the strange office-like room. "What?" he muttered and then saw the kriken that had captured him. "Servu..." he muttered again, his memory returning in a flash. Servu's yellow eye glinted maliciously.

"Your use seems to have expired. Get up and fight!" Servu mocked, throwing the Admiral a small laser pistol. Admiral Lyte stared at it in confusion.

"What?" Lyte demanded. Servu laughed cruelly.

"You're no longer needed alive, so fight for your life! Makes it more fun for me." Servu explained, readying his Imperialist. Admiral Lyte scowled and grabbed the pistol, standing boldly. "Should have stayed away Admiral..." Servu mocked and fired the Imperialist. Admiral Lyte dove to the side, rolling back to his feet, returning fire with the laser pistol. Servu dodged with unusual speed, firing the Imperialist again, hitting the pistol, destroying it completely. Lyte gasped, wringing his hand in pain, dropping the melted weapon.

"Damn it...guess I'll fight unarmed." Lyte said. Servu laughed again, darting forward and slamming his claw into Lyte's chest, sending the Admiral into the wall, bleeding from the new gash in his chest.

"You're nothing to me, Admiral." Servu sneered, firing the Imperialist. The red beam struck Admiral Lyte in the chest, killing him almost instantly. Servu chuckled slightly, just as Trek entered the room from the wall panel behind the table. "Ah, you're back." Servu said sarcastically.

"Indeed." Trek replied calmly. "I trust you enjoyed yourself?" he said, glancing briefly at the Admiral's body. Servu shrugged. "It was destiny, Servu. Your time will come soon." Trek said, studying a card before reshuffling the deck.

"How soon?" Servu asked impatiently.

"Sooner than you think, but later than now." Trek replied mysteriously. Servu scowled. "The cards are uncertain about your future, Servu. Until Trace is dead, you are doomed to die before getting the throne." Trek said calmly.

"So I should face Trace?" Servu hissed. Trek chuckled.

"Not at all. He will come to you, not the other way around. Be patient, for your arrogance is your weakness." Trek said. "Know your weakness, and you can fix it. Be unaware and it can be exploited. It's the same with destiny. Only by knowing it can you change it, otherwise we are nothing more than pawns to its power." Servu rolled his eye, but said nothing.

A light blinked and Trek turned to his small computer console, smirking. Servu looked at Trek questioningly. "What is that?" Servu asked coldly.

"It appears as though Kanden, the mutated bounty hunter, has come to pay us a little visit." Trek replied, studying a few cards.

"Why?" Servu asked, confused. Trek laughed.

"No doubt he has his reasons. I have my own idea, and if I'm correct, Kanden is just as big a fool as I thought." Trek replied simply, as Servu approached the window near the table, staring as the _Poison_, Kanden's ship, approached the lower level.

"There's a docking bay there?" he muttered, trying to see past the mess of steel ledges that seemed to grow from the Station. Whoever built this station was a very unusual architect.

"Yes, and the builder of this station built those ledges for maintenance purposes. There's a special barrier around this station that enables even unsuited individuals to safely walk on them, although within a low-gravity field. The only danger is falling into the abyss below the station, for the one to do so would surely perish, suited or not." Trek said quietly. Servu glanced at him in shock. "No, I still cant read minds." Trek said calmly. Servu scowled.

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Kanden approached the station, scowling in anger. He would find this 'Trek' and avenge Weavel. In the past, Kanden wouldn't have cared for Weavel's death, but over the months, he had come to have a bond of tentative friendship with the Space Pirate. He readied his Volt Driver as he approached the lower levels. No doubt, if this 'Trek' person was at the Station, he would be aware of his approach, but there were no security systems guarding the lower docking bays. After a few moments of careful piloting, Kanden landed his ship and exitted, Volt Driver aimed at all possible threats.

"I'll show you my power...and what happens when you mess with a friend!" Kanden hissed to himself, climbing up a ramp leading to an elevator. Upon entering the elevator, it rose up slowly, stopping at a large circular room, which seemed empty, except for a few strange, deteriorated pillars. Kanden looked around carefully, and moved forward, noting a large table near a staircase that looked like it was used as a large conference room. Kanden shrugged and climbed the stairs carefully, entering the door at the top. He walked down a corridor, alert for any form of resistance.

The lack of any opposition ordinarily would have sparked some worry in the mutated hunter, but he was too focused on finding Weavel's killer to concern himself with such a triviality. At the end of the corridor was another, smaller circular room with two doors leading out. Kanden glanced around and saw nothing even in the room, save for a single metal pole that stuck out from the wall, and connected to the ceiling. It was some form of decoration, although whether it had another purpose, Kanden wasn't sure. He entered through one door and followed a small corridor to a deserted docking bay. There were no other doors, except for spaceships to enter, so Kanden turned back and went through the second door, following the new passageway to an elevator. It rose up, just like the first one, and he emerged in another room.

There were two ways to go, left and right. Kanden chose left and found himself in an occupied docking bay, taking note that ship was the Kriken Force II, the predecessor to Drek's ship. He shrugged indifferently and backtracked the other route and found himself outside of an office like room. There were two figures in the room and Kanden paused in the doorway. Both figures had their backs to him. One was a red kriken wearing a cloak, but the hood was down. The other was seated at the table, some strange cards on the table. This kriken also wore a cloak. Kanden raised his Volt Driver aggressively and aimed at the figures, but to his momentary shock, the seated figure spoke.

"Kanden, you have arrived at last." the voice was strangely eerie, but Kanden wasn't quite sure why he thought this. The figures turned to him, and Kanden recognized Servu as the red kriken. The other, was a yellow kriken with a red eye. Kanden smirked slightly. Servu was red with a yellow eye, the other was yellow with a red eye. Another thought struck him. The yellow kriken was a male, and from the limited knowledge of krikens that he possessed, he knew that yellow was typically a female color, and yellow males were often insulted for this trait.

"Yeah, that's me. You're Trek, right?" Kanden snarled, noticing the dead body of a human in a corner. "That's the Federation Admiral, isn't it?" he asked, gesturing to the body. Servu nodded with a smirk.

"Correct, I am Trek. How many I help you?" Trek replied, lowering his hood and examining the cards on the table. "Your arrival was predicted, and my predictions haven't been wrong yet." Trek added, to Kanden's questioning stare.

"You killed Weavel, didn't you?" Kanden snarled furiously, pointing his Volt Driver at the kriken. Servu looked momentarily surprised at this accusation, but Trek didn't so much as twitch. In fact, he smiled slightly and stared back at Kanden with an expression of serene interest.

"He was destined to die, Kanden. His fate was sealed, much like your own." Trek said calmly, lifting a card. Kanden squinted at it. "The Sealed Fate card, Kanden, symbolizes a destiny that can not be escaped. The next card represents you, the Lost Soul. This card symbolizes not only you, but I see that you are truly lost in your quest to uncover the meaning on your existence. You learned already that mindless killing does nothing, but you feel that you are alone, lost in the eternal struggle between good and evil." Trek said quietly.

"What the hell does that mean?" Kanden snapped furiously. Trek laughed, and Servu and Kanden shuddered simultaneously.

"The Lost Soul represents you, because you do not understand your path. You are lost, and all events create more confusion. Are you good, or are you evil? Your murderous rages imply you have an evil heart, but you also still possess feelings, and the pain of loss. You were doomed from the start, Kanden, and the Sealed Fate card symbolizes this. You cannot escape your ultimate fate." Trek said, chuckling.

"I'll kil you for what you did!" Kanden screamed, firing his Volt Driver. Trek calmly lifted the top card of the deck and held it up.

"Retaliation, upside down! Your attempts for revenge fail!" Trek sneered. Servu recognized the card from his first encounter with Trek. The Volt Driver bolts hit the barrier Trek had around the desk, bouncing away harmlessly. "Why don't you try again?" Trek whispered, standing up and pulling out a Space Pirate energy blade. Servu blinked in surprise. Who, other than the Emperor, used such a weapon? Trek grinned and activated the energy flow and Servu flinched. The energy powering the blade was red, rather than the usual yellow. Kanden looked startled as well, but recovered quickly.

"How did you make a red energy?" Servu asked seriously. Trek grinned.

"It's powered by a different energy source. No more powerful, more expensive, and looks better than the boring yellow." Trek replied, doing a forward flip over the table, facing Kanden with a slightly demonic grin. Kanden fired his Volt Driver quickly, but Trek reacted immediately, with reflexes rivaling Servu's, and sidestepped, spinning his sword in his claw, the blur of red forming a large circle. Servu was unwillingly impressed. Such a technique was dangerous, as the slightest slip could injure the user, but Trek was doing this almost effortlessly. The Volt Driver bolts scattered away harmlessly as they hit the spinning blade. Kanden gasped in shock as Trek stopped the spinning blade. "See how you're finished?" Trek sneered.

"I'll avenge my fallen friend!" Kanden snarled. Trek shrugged.

"Then so be it." Trek said indifferently, as Kanden morphed into the Stinglarva, slithering towards Trek, who watched the giant slug with a trace of amusement. Servu narrowed his eye. What was Kanden planning? Trek abruptly leapt into the air, flipping twice before landing behind the slug and jabbing the sword into the slug, which let out a strange shriek of pain. Trek laughed, as Kanden returned to biped, wincing from the agony inflicted.

"You're dead!" Kanden raged, firing a charged Volt Driver burst. Trek briefly glanced at a random tarot card and spun the blade quickly before kicking off the wall, propelling himself forward towards the burst. The burst hit Trek, blurring his vision, but his momentum carried him right next to Kanden, and he swung the sword, striking Kanden in the chest, knocking the mutated hunter to the ground, his power suit smoking. Trek jabbed down towards Kanden, his blurred vision preventing a perfect jab, and Kanden managed to roll aside in time. The mutant hunter crawled to his feet, punching Trek, who stumbled backwards, but kept his balance, vision restored.

"You've done well, Kanden, but fate is against you. You've lost before you began." Trek said calmly. "Your fate is sealed, and you overlooked one important thing. Even if you win, you have no path to follow. You're lost, and everything that ever mattered to you is gone. You have no friends, no family. You don't even have some mindless hunt to do to occupy your time until you die." Trek explained and Kanden lunged forward, pulling his fist back, but Trek kicked Kanden in the chest, following through with a quick upward slash. Kanden gasped in agony, the wound deeper than he expected it would be, as it was perfectly aligned with Trek's last slash.

"This isn't over yet!" Kanden gasped, desperately raising his Volt Driver, but Trek spun the blade quickly, cutting Kanden's arm cannon in two, then jabbing the sword forward, into Kanden's chest. The wound was definitely fatal, and Kanden collapsed, his breathing labored. Trek walked back to the table and placed the tarot deck on the table and shuffled quickly. Servu watched as Kanden's body went limp, no longer breathing. He was impressed by Trek's swordfighting ability, and his merciless style. When he had met Trek at the training academy, the yellow male was not only an easy victim for insults, but he was unskilled with weapons, most notably long distance weapons. Even with the Imperialist, Trek's scores were very low.

"That was...surprising." Servu finally said, and Trek chuckled.

"Swordfighting wasn't considered a valuable skill, but master it and you can be stronger than the greatest sniper. You must be alert, and prepared for anything, a quality that you, and many others, lack. A sniper's weakness is distance, a swordsman's strength is distance." Trek said calmly, deactivating the energy flow of his blade and hooking it to a strange yellow utility belt that blended perfectly with his skin. The cloak he wore concealed the weapon from view.

"Now what?" Servu asked, slightly impatiently.

"You will never learn." Trek said quietly, studying a few cards and smirking to himself before reshuffling. "Your time will come soon. Patience is a necessary virtue, lest you get reckless and fail your goals." Trek said.

**Hope you liked this chapter.**


	19. Judgment

"So, where does this Trek currently live?" Drek asked. Trace examined the record carefully.

"His current wherabouts are unknown." Trace replied. Drek brought up a space map and examined the area quickly.

"He has an obsession with the future? What about the Destiny Station?" Drek suggested after a few minutes. "The records state it's been abandoned for years, but Trek was exiled years ago and if people think a place is abandoned, they're unlikely to go there randomly." Drek explained.

"I guess it's worth a try. By the way, recent reports confirm the destruction of the Space Pirate HQ, and Weavel has recently been confirmed dead." Trace said, studying the computer screen. Drek looked at Trace in surprise.

"So...the Empire leaders, the Federation leaders, and the Space Pirate leaders were all killed?" Drek replied incredulously. "How did someone manage that?"

"Sylux killed the Federation commander, the Federation Admiral is missing, the Emperor and Overlord were killed by a traitor, and Sylux destroyed the base, but Weavel has been reported as stabbed with a Pirate Blade." Trace said, examining a few records. Drek nodded absently, flying the ship towards the Destiny Station, which Trace had never heard of before. It wasn't the best of clues, but it was worth a shot to determine who was the traitor to the Empire.

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Spire studied his computer screen for a moment and grinned slightly. His tracking beacon has flashed a moment, signaling that the Kriken Force III was nearby. Not very close, but he was able to lock onto its position. He quickly brought up a map of the system and studied their path.

"Destiny Station? What's there?" Spire muttered.

"What's that, Spire? A clue?" Noxus asked. Spire winced, forgetting his communication device was still on.

"I'm not sure. Drek is heading to some area called the 'Destiny Station', and it looks like they left from the Kriken HQ." Spire said quietly.

"Why are you still tracking him? You could die if you fight him again." Noxus said seriously.

"I know, but it helps to be able to keep track of your enemies." Spire replied seriously. Noxus sighed, but dropped the subject. Samus considered this development.

"Why there? That's just an old, abandoned Space Station. I've got to go hunt for Federation survivors, I'll contact you two later." Samus said, and her communication shut off. Spire shrugged and continued to study the stream of data Noxus was sending.

"There's got to be clues that point the way to the attacker. Whoever started this war must have a hidden agenda. It's just too convenient. There's no way anyone can control the entire war, but everything that has happened seems to almost random, but has only one common factor. By destroying the leader, it destroys the army. All 3 armies are weakened now, but what will happen now is unknown." Noxus said.

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Drek landed the ship in a docking bay near the bottom of the station and both he and Trace exitted the ship, Imperialists ready. This docking bay was located outside of the station and Drek glanced around. "Interesting, this station is surrounded by a special field. It's one of those special maintenance fields where you dont need a space suit to make use of the reduced gravity. I never understood how it works, but it makes moving around easer." Drek said. Trace nodded. He understood the field, but now how it worked.

They entered a door that led to the stations interior and Trace flinched. "Isn't that Kanden's ship? The _Poison_?" Trace asked. Drek studied the ship briefly before nodding. "So this place isn't as unoccupied as it looks." Trace added.

"Apparently not." Drek agreed, leading the way up a ramp until they reached an elevator, which rose up. They emerged in a large circular room, which looked like a conference room. It looked deserted, but Drek fired his Imperialist at one of the chairs, which was facing away from them. Sudden laughter filled the room, and Trace tensed. He knew that laugh. The chair swiveled around to reveal a red kriken, who wore a cloak, whose yellow eye glinted maliciously.

"Servu..." Trace snarled in annoyance. Why would he have to encounter his rival now? Servu grinned sinisterly.

"We meet again, Trace. For the last time." Servu said quietly, standing the cloak billowing behind him. Drek scowled.

"Stand aside, Servu. We're looking for Trek. Is he here?" Drek said commandingly.

"I'm afraid I dont obey you anymore, Drek. You lost your status as a Battlelord, and I am the future Emperor." Servu replied dismissively. Drek narrowed his eye suspiciously. "Oh, you didn't hear of the Emperor's death? He was murdered not too long ago." Servu said, grinning widely. It was this, more than Servu's words, that triggered Trace's anger.

"You should respect the Emperor, even in death!" Trace spat angrily. Servu chuckled.

"Why respect what no longer lives? As the new Emperor, I no longer shall concern myself with the last Emperor." Servu sneered. Drek scowled furiously.

"You're not the Emperor yet, Servu!" Drek snapped. Servu laughed.

"You're a fool then. You have no interest in the rank, and Trek doesn't want the throne, so that leaves me!" Servu cackled. He threw his cloak aside and Drek and Trace gasped simultaneously. Servu wore the black cape of the Emperor. Whether it was the dead Emperor's cape was uncertain, although the Emperor hadn't been wearing the cape when dead.

"You stole that, didn't you?" Trace demanded.

"Stole? Hardly. This is mine!" Servu sneered, firing his Imperialist. Trace ducked, firing his own Imperialist. The beam missed Servu, who ducked behind one of the chairs. "You've gotten no stronger, Trace. You're as weak as you always have been." Servu mocked.

"Yet I beat you everytime." Trace retorted angrily. Drek stayed back, watching with concern.

"Calm yourself Trace. Anger gets you nowhere." Drek warned. Servu smirked, firing the Imperialist, which grazed Trace's shoulder. Trace winced, firing at Servu, who once more ducked behind a chair. Trace sidestepped, trying to get an angle at Servu, but a red beam fired from behind the chair, striking an inch away from Trace's current position. Trace leapt forward, landing on the conference table, and he kicked the chair away quickly. Servu had anticipated the technique, his next shot narrowly missing Trace's head, although this was only because Trace jerked back just in time. Servu took advantage of Trace's recoil, punching Trace's leg, knocking his rival off the table.

Trace rolled to the side, dodging another Imperialist shot, returning fire with his own. Servu grunted as the beam struck his shoulder, but recovered quickly. "So weak, Trace. You're surviving on luck alone." Servu snickered, firing the Imperialist again. Trace leapt to the side, rolling and firing his Imperialist again. Servu dodged quickly and morphed to Triskelion, lunging forward at Trace. Trace leapt over the Triskelion, once more jumping onto the conference table. Servu returned to biped, ducking an Imperialist beam. They were almost perfectly matched. Servu fired his Imperialist again, and Trace leapt over the beam, landing in front of Servu, whose eye widened in surprise and Trace struck him twice in the face, knocking him to the ground.

"You're too overconfident, Servu." Drek said coldly, as Trace fired the Imperialist. Servu lashed out his foot, catching Trace in the stomache, pushing Trace back, the beam missing by centimeters. Servu hurried to his feet, eye alight with malicious glee, and fired again. Trace pivoted, the beam narrowly missing.

"You cannot defeat me, Trace!" Servu mocked. Trace scowled and fired, hitting Servu's arm. Servu cursed, rage building up. "You'll pay for that! And all the other humiliations! No one is stronger than me!" Servu raged, lunging forward. Trace punched quickly, knocking Servu off balance before kicking him to the ground.

"I have gotten better at close range combat." Trace said seriously. Servu grinned and fired his Imperialist, hitting Trace's leg.

"Yet you're as easy to injure as before." Servu sneered, getting back to his feet.

"Injuries are nothing, it's the final blow that matters in the end." Trace replied. firing the Imperialist, hitting Servu in the chest. Servu gasped in pain, glaring at his hated rival. The wound wasn't enough to keep him down. He would kill the fool, and prove his superior power.

"Good bye, Trace. Good riddance!" Servu laughed firing his Imperialist, but Trace dodged with absurd speed, kicking Servu's Imperialist aside. Servu blinked in shock, but reacted quickly, kicking Trace's Imperialist aside as well. Drek chuckled. Servu grinned and punched Trace, who stumbled back, then flipped over Servu, startling both Drek and Servu. Trace kicked Servu to the ground.

"I win this one, Servu." Trace said, but Servu reached his arm out, grabbing one of the fallen Imperialists and turned to fire, but Trace kicked upwards, knocking the weapon into the air. Servu kicked Trace backwards and stood up, running towards the Imperialist. Trace scrambled to retrieve the other one, and they both seized the weapons almost simultaneously. Trace fired, his beam hitting Servu in the chest, forcing him to drop his weapon. Drek winced. That shot was going to be fatal, but not immediate.

"How...?" Servu groaned, staring in disbelief. "I was supposed to win!" he groaned.

"Oh? You misinterpreted my prediction then." said an eerie voice. A cloaked yellow kriken stood in the doorway overlooking the room, directly above the conference table. "I merely said that the only way you'd claim the throne was by defeating Trace, but you were destined to lose! I warned you that your arrogance and recklessness would be your undoing. By failing to heed that warning, you sealed your fate Servu!" the kriken sneered, holding up 3 cards. "Your fate: The Skeptic, upside down symbolizes your death, the Sealed Fate symbolizes this result was inevitable. The Veiled Threat...right side up. You overlooked the threat, which sealed your demise."

"You're Trek, aren't you?" Drek called to the yellow kriken, who smirked slightly.

"Indeed." Trek replied, glancing at Servu with indifference, shuffling the three cards back into the deck he was carrying. Servu glared at him venomously before shuddering and becoming still. "To think you ever had a chance of restoring the Empire..." Trek murmured, chuckling coldly. He glanced at Trace and Drek with an amused grin.

"You needed me for something? Perhaps to learn of your destinies?" Trek mocked.

"Is Kanden here?" Trace asked abruptly.

"Here? Yes. Alive...I'm afraid not. It is not wise to challenge me to a duel. It was my destiny to win. His fate was sealed, just like Servu's." Trek replied calmly. Trace's eye twitched.

"And you think that you can just decide those who live and die?" Trace demanded. Trek chuckled.

"I only see the future, and if needed, change a few details. This war was started by me, to save my future." Trek replied. Drek's eye narrowed furiously.

"You arranged for hundreds to die to save yourself?" he snarled. Trek laughed again.

"They were insignificant lives. Servu died because he didn't heed the warnings of his weaknesses." Trek retorted. Drek raised his Imperialist threatening, and Trace did the same. "If you challenge me, you will cause more pain and suffering." Trek said maliciously.

"Better than leave you to do the same!" Drek said and both krikens fired their Imperialists.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	20. Duel of Destiny part 1

The two red beams from Trace and Drek's Imperialists lanced out quickly, but Trek laughed maliciously, revealing one of his tarot cards. "Eternal Shield, right side up! My defenses are secure!" Trek sneered. The beams struck the card, doing no damage to it at all.

"How the...?" Trace sputtered. Trek snickered.

"Destiny. These cards are coated with a special material that resists damage. How else did they survive so many years of use?" Trek replied. "Besides, this card represents that my defenses are too powerful for you to penetrate."

"It's still two on one." Trace pointed out and Trek grinned.

"So you need another demonstration? Bring it on, then." Trek mocked. Drek fired his Imperialist and Trek leapt into the air. Trace jerked his Imperialist to fire, but Trek twisted in midair, dodging the beam and landing between Trace and Drek. With a swift motion, Trek kicked, knocking both krikens to the ground, but they both rolled back to their feet, firing again. Trek seized another card and smirked. "Retaliation, upside down! By sidestepping, you fail." Trek said, sidestepping, both beams missed.

"Are there any cards there that dont say you're going to dodge?" Drek asked sarcastically. Trek chuckled malevolently, a sound that made Trace shudder.

"You'll find out, won't you? I cannot be defeated by the likes of you. The Victory card is right side up. Therefore, I'm destined to win this duel." Trek replied, holding up another card. Trace looked at it, unimpressed.

"So you're saying that you are going to win a duel because you drew a certain card? Either you're incredibly overconfident, or something's seriouly wrong with you." Trace said.

"It's a cross of both." Drek agreed. Trek grinned.

"Then why don't you show me what you've got?" Trek sneered.

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"Anything new, Noxus?" Spire asked. The Vhozon hunter sighed as he examined the recent reports.

"Nothing. The Empire has officially withdrawn from the battles, the Federation is officially out of troops, and the Space Pirates have no idea what the hell is going on, mainly because they're out of troops also." Noxus replied wearily. Spire nodded thoughtfully.

"We could try to figure out what's going on with Drek at that Destiny Station place." Spire suggested and Noxus groaned under his breath.

"Ok fine. We'll check the place out." Noxus relented. "Only because it might lead to better clues. Where is the Destiny Station anyway?" he asked after a moment.

"I have a tracking signal coming from there, so I'll lead the way." Spire replied, and Noxus followed the _Avalanche_. After a few long minutes of silence, Noxus saw the strange Space Station. It seemed somewhat skeletal, since its exterior seemed entirely composed of metal ledges, which wrapped around the station.

"Ok...that looks really creepy." Noxus muttered and Spire chuckled in reply.

"Ok, now we need to go to a docking bay...oh there's one." Spire said, leading the way to a large docking bay, which was large enough for both the _Avalanche _and the _Eternal Justice_. They exitted their ships cautiously, Noxus with his Judicator ready, Spire readying his Magmaul.

"This place seems abandoned, but you're sure the tracking signal is from here?" Noxus asked nervously. Spire nodded. "Let's go then." Noxus said, walking towards the door that led out of the docking bay. They emerged in a small passage which led in varying directions. "Ok...well, guess we search and hope to get lucky." Noxus sighed.

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Drek fired his Imperialist and Trek smirked, flipping over the beam and kicking Drek to the ground. Trace fired and Trek flipped a card and flipped backwards over the beam. "Veiled Threat, I almost missed that one!" Trek sneered. "It symbolized I overlooked a threat, but the warning came in time." Trace stared at Trek in disbelief.

"Are you just going to spout nonsense?" Trace blurted, getting annoyed. Trek chuckled.

"Destiny is not nonsense, Trace. You're almost as big a skeptic as Servu, but even he couldn't deny the merits of my predictions. I have never been wrong yet." Trek said calmly.

"Well, then this is your first!" Trace replied, lunging forward, but to his alarm, Trek sidestepped with surprising speed, kicking Trace in the back, sending him sprawling on the floor. Drek scowled as he stood up, pulling Trace back to his feet.

"He's better at close range combat, and can dodge our distance shots. Analyze the strategy and then counter it." Drek whispered and Trace nodded, deep in thought.

"The Plotting card symbolizes the attempt to plan. However, this card is upside down, symbolizing it will fail." Trek said softly, smirking to himself. Destiny always favored him, but that was because he then knew how to alter the negative effects. Control destiny, and you can control anything. "Let's kick this duel up a notch. I might get bored and just kill you to spare myself the annoyance of toying with you." Trek said.

"Never toy with your opponents, Trek." Drek snapped, firing his Imperialist. Trek grinned and leapt over it. Trace fired a calculated shot where Trek would land. Trek kicked the wall as he approached, pausing his descent long enough for the beam to miss. Drek fired just as Trek landed, but the yellow kriken morphed to Triskelion to dodge, returning to biped immediately afterwards.

"I never did like that form." Trek muttered. "Now, you have grown quite annoying, so let's end this!" Trek sneered, flipping forward, kicking both krikens while in midair. Drek and Trace grunted slightly as they hit the ground, but recovered quickly and got back to their feet, watching Trek warily. The yellow kriken's cloak flapped behind him like a cape as he seized a Space Pirate energy blade that was somehow attached to his hip. He spun the blade once before the blade pulsed with red energy.

"Wait...aren't the energy blades yellow?" Drek and Trace said simultaneously. Trek blinked briefly.

"I can see why I was named after you two. You're so alike. Yes, energy blades are normally yellow." Trek sighed. "Mine uses a different, more expensive energy to give a different color. It cost significantly more money, and other than a better look, it has no benefits."

"How much more?" Trace asked. Trek flipped a tarot card and chuckled.

"Nice try, Trace. Your distraction fails." Trek replied, flipping forward, just as Drek fired his Imperialist. "The cards see everything, and the Veiled Threat once more warns me." Trek sneered, kicking Trace down to the ground, spinning his blade expertly. Trace rolled to the side and fired the Imperialist. Trek rolled under the beam, kicking Drek's leg and slashing the blade upwards, cutting through Drek's Imperialist.

"Damn it!" Drek muttered, backing away slowly, limping slightly.

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"There's an elevator over here." Noxus called and Spire hurried over. "It goes downwards." Noxus added, and Spire shrugged, stepping onto the elevator platform, which carried them downwards to another room. They walked down a passageway and emerged in a small circular room. There were two doors here, and a strange pole sticking from the wall that connected to the ceiling.

"Which way?" Spire asked, studying the door diagonally across the room and the door adjacent to the door they had come from.

"I think that one would go to another docking bay." Noxus murmured, thinking about the layout of the station. "So that one we should try." he said, pointing at the door diagonal to them. They walked carefully through the door, alert for any danger and found themselves in an even larger circular room. The room was mostly open space, with a conference table or something directly beneath the staircase they were standing on. On one side of the room was a dead kriken, which Spire recognized as Servu. On the other side was some sort of battle.

"What the hell?" Spire muttered. He recognized Trace and Drek easily, but they were battling a strange yellow kriken who was holding some form of energy sword, which glowed with red energy.

"That's a bit weirder than normal." Noxus agreed. The yellow kriken chuckled and apparently had just did something special, since Drek was backing up, looking surprised.

"You're next Trace!" the yellow kriken sneered. It was definitely a male voice, which Spire thought was funny for some reason.

"What's funny?" Noxus asked, puzzled.

"Most yellow krikens are female." Spire replied simply. He stopped as the yellow kriken spun the red blade to the side, cutting through Trace's Imperialist.

"Disarmed. Now let's step the duel up to the next level! It's no fun to just cut down two unarmed opponents." the yellow kriken mused, grabbing 2 energy blades from under the cloak and throwing them to the stunned krikens, who activated the energy flow, the blades glowing yellow.

"Star Wars, anyone?" Noxus asked, grinning for a reason Spire didn't know, although it probably had to do with human movies, which Noxus liked for some reason.

"It's still 2 on 1, Trek." Drek said seriously, spinning the energy blade experimentally in his claw. Trace waved the sword a few times, also practicing with it. Noxus got the feeling neither of them knew a thing about serious swordfighting. Maybe Drek did, being the eldest kriken present, but Trace probably didn't.

"Odds are nothing. It's the skill that matters. You two are inexperienced at swordplay, while I have mastered it. Also, destiny is on my side, it always has been. When it's not, I change a few things. Besides, you two have an audience to this duel, so fight hard!" Trek replied coldly. Trace and Drek's gaze flickered to Noxus and Spire.

"We'll beat you, Trek. Your sick game ends here!" Trace replied with a snarl.

"The Destined Duel...when it ends, none of you shall be the same!" Trek said calmly. He watched as Trace ran forward, calmly blocking Trace's vicious slash and kicking Trace in the stomache afterwards, the red kriken hitting the ground, sliding a few inches backwards. Drek ran forward as well, Trek blocking the downward cut, pushing Drek's blade aside calmly and jabbing. Drek slammed his blade downwards, pushing Trek's blade away from him.

"You're tough, Trek, but I also trained in swordfighting. A balance of skills helps more than mastery in only one." Drek said calmly.

"We shall see, we shall see!" Trek sneered.

TO BE CONTINUED...

**A bit shorter than normal, but if I keep going, the transition will be harder later. And I like cliffhangers.**


	21. Duel of Destiny part 2

Trek smirked confidently, watching Drek carefully. The venom green kriken stared back, however his expression was one of distaste, rather than amusement. Trace returned to his feet, watching the yellow kriken suspiciously. "Let's move on!" Trek sneered, swinging his sword with surprising speed. Noxus gasped, but Drek countered the slash, sidestepping to the right to deliver his own attack. Trek flipped over Drek, dodging the attack in the process and swinging his sword around to deliver a fatal blow, but Trace lunged forward, blocking the slash just in time for Drek to turn around.

"Thank you, Trace. Now let's take him down!" Drek said. Trace nodded and both slashed at Trek as a team. Trek ducked Trace's slash and blocked Drek's, following with a hard kick to Drek's stomache, pushing the venom kriken backwards, giving Trek the time to deflect Trace's second attack.

"Even together, they can't quite keep up to him." Noxus murmured to Spire, who nodded, watching the battle with nervous fascination. Trace stepped to the side and swung his blade around, but Trek blocked, punching Trace.

"Don't drop your guard, Trace. By making that attack, you left your defense open." Trek sneered, kicking his foot backwards, hitting Drek's claw, knocking the energy sword away. "Same to you Drek. Just because you're behind me, doesn't mean I cant disarm or harm you." he added, grinning wickedly. Drek scowled, ducking as Trek swung his sword around, the red blade narrowly missing his head. Trace had recovered from the punch and lunged forward, swinging the sword quickly. Trek blocked the first three blows with ease, then flipped onto the table to dodge the fourth. Drek retrieved his sword and ran over to confront Trek.

"Together, Trace!" Drke called, as both he and Trace jumped onto the table as well. Trek's grin widened for some reason. He glanced at a card quickly and slowly backed away from them. Drek's emerald eye narrowed a moment, but he nodded to Trace and they slowly advanced, wary of a trap.

"Not bad, you learn from experience." Trek said, spinning his blade in his claw pausing with every rotation. Trace had to admit, it was somewhat intimidating to fight someone who could do that so easily. Drek seemed unfazed by the technique. "But can you sense the real danger?" Trek hissed, swinging his sword quickly. Drek countered the slash and Trace moved forward, cutting from a low angle, but Trek jumped over the blade, kicking Drek while in the air, knocking him off the table. Then Trek slashed at Trace, who narrowly blocked. Trek swung again, but Trace ducked, swinging his sword at an upward angle. Trek backflipped to the other end of the long table and Trace paused. Drek got back to his feet and jumped back onto the table. Trek grinned. While Drek was still in the air, he hopped off the table and cut one of the table legs off.

Trace managed to slide easily to the ground as one side of the table collapsed, although he was thrown off balance by the abrupt shift in gravity. Drek slammed into the table, lacking enough time to shift his intended landing position. He slumped down to the ground, getting up awkwardly, wincing. "Only my dignity is hurt." he replied to Trace's worried glance.

"Which is rather important to one of your status." Trek pointed out, darting forward. Drek ducked, jabbing his sword forward, intent on hitting Trek, who simply flipped over the blade, landing between the two krikens, blocking Trace's swing and doing another backwards kick to shove Drek aside. Trace scowled, aggravated. "Your anger will not overpower me, Trace." Trek replied calmly, easily blocking three aggressive swings. "All it'll do is weaken you. You lose focus of your goal, and therefore are easy prey." Trek added, spinning his blade quickly, wrenching Trace's sword away. It flew into the air and Spire caught it, staring at it in surprise.

"You realize this could have killed me, right?" Spire yelled. Trace stared at him in amusement. "Oh right...you want to kill me." Spire muttered, jumping off the staircase and landing on the crooked table, which snapped under his weight. Noxus stared at the Diamont in disbelief.

"Any reason why you're joining a deadly fight?" Noxus yelled and Spire shrugged.

"Looked like fun." he admitted. Trek chuckled and took out two more energy blades from beneath his cloak. Noxus was beginning to wonder how many of those he had. He threw one to Noxus, another to Trace. Both hunters activated the energy flow, two more yellow blades glowing.

"Now four on one. Might actually entertain me." Trek said with a smirk as his four opponents readied themselves. "The true duel begins here. Careful not to kill each other, by the way. It'll take the fun out of it." Trek added as an afterthought. Spire scowled and ran forward, causing the floor to vibrate. Trek grinned and blocked the attack, kicking Spire and then wincing.

"Being a giant rock has an advantage." Spire said, clearly unharmed. Trek scowled and flipped backwards, just as Noxus attacked. While in mid-flip, he kicked Noxus in the head, sending the Vhozon to the ground. Trace and Drek attacked together, but Trek pivoted, blocking both blades with one swing. Spire lunged forward, intent on hitting Trek from behind, but Trek flipped backwards over the Diamont, bringing his blade around as he descended, grazing Spire's arm. Spire grunted in pain, clutching the minor wound with one hand.

"So weak!" Trek sneered, his eye glinting with manic glee. Noxus ran forward, but Trek blocked the blow, spinning the blade quickly. Noxus grunted in pain as the blade grazed his chest, also knocking his sword out of Noxus' hand, where it slid across the floor. Noxus ducked another slash and dove after the fallen sword. Drek, Trace, and Spire attacked simultaneously, and Trek blocked Spire's slash and kicked Trace aside, then ducked Drek's slash, following up with a jab, hitting Spire directly in the chest. Spire's energy blade dropped from his hand, as the Diamont clutched his wound in agony.

"NO!" Noxus yelled in fury as Trek stepped back gracefully, grinning wickedly. "You bastard!" Noxus screamed at Trek, who chuckled.

"The Survivor card represents Spire, and now it's upside down, symbolizing his death. He was destined to die. Your efforts to preserve him were in vain, Drek." Trek said calmly as Spire collapsed to the ground, bleeding profusely. "I'm not sure what's more amusing, that you kept him alive to later kill him, or that someone beat you to it!" Trek cackled. Trace lunged forward, swinging his sword for a killing blow. Trek countered it, struggling slightly against the sheer power of the blow, and Noxus slashed at Trek with a rage he had rarely experienced before. Trek jerked backwards, Noxus' blow overshooting and hitting the hilt of Trace's energy blade, almost taking the red krken's hand with it, cutting the sword in two.

"Damn it!" Trace growled, as Trek was in the perfect position for a finishing blow, having lost his balance by his abrupt jerk backwards. Drek tried to take advantage of the opportunity, but he was furthest away, and by the time he was in range, Trek had regained his composure, blocking the blow easily and then kicking Noxus aside. With a quick spin of his blade, he also destroyed Drek's energy blade, leaving the venom kriken defenseless.

"Farewell!" Trek mocked, advancing on Noxus, who got to his feet, seething with rage.

"You'll pay for this!" Noxus snarled, but Trek easily deflected his attacks, grinning.

"You are but an amateur with a sword, while I am a master." Trek said calmly, jumping onto the ruins of the conference table. Noxus threw the energy blade, but Trek laughed and leapt into the air, flipping over the staircase guardrail. "The Empire, Federation, and Space Pirates are all finished. Each event was controlled by destiny. The murders of the kriken leaders were arranged by me. The deaths of the Federation leaders were set up by me. Weavel was killed personally. Kanden was destined to follow, and now the honor of the Last Diamont's demise belongs to me!" Trek said quietly,

"You're the traitor!" Trace yelled in rage. Trek grinned sadistically.

"I returned the favor they bestowed upon me. If you don't believe my predictions, they're bound to strike you later! The Emperor was destined to be killed and I just ensured the death would work for my advantage, and see how it has! You two came here searching for the killer, and the Diamont followed! Now the honor is mine." Trek replied coldly. He turned to the door with a smirk.

"You'll pay for all you did to these lives, Trek!" Drek shouted. Trek chuckled.

"Finish the job, then. If you can!" Trek replied, exitting the room and disappearing from view. Noxus ran over to Spire's body, praying he wasn't dead yet. His prayer was too late, as the Diamont was indeed dead.

"It's my fault..." Noxus muttered to himself, barely aware that Trace and Drek had run after the yellow kriken. "If I hadn't rushed into the fight, Trace could have killed him. If I was stronger, I could have beaten him before you died..." he said bitterly. Inevitably, his sadness was giving way to anger. "He will pay for all the lives he's ruined. He started a war for his own twisted purposes! He aided in the death of hundreds! Including you, Kanden and Weavel!" Noxus said angrily.

He made a vow right then and there. He would avenge Spire, track the evil kriken and ensure justice was served. He owed it to Spire, and the other lives that had been destroyed by Trek's actions. He wasn't going to blame himself, or Spire, or anyone other than Trek. The yellow kriken had killed Spire, Kanden, Weavel, and indirectly hundreds more.

**Originally, this chapter was going to be split into two chapters, but I decided against it in the end, simply because dragging the fight out that long would be too annoying, both to read and to write.**


	22. The Hero

Trek smirked as he hurried down the corridor, emerging in the smaller circular room. Without wasting time, he walked over to the pole that protruded from the wall and tapped a hidden switch, activating the security lock for the door he had just come from. "That'll hold them..." he murmured, turning to leave the room when the door leading to a spare docking bay slid open and Samus Aran entered, pausing upon seeing him. Trek's eye narrowed as he flipped one of his tarot cards. "The Hero card...it represents Samus. I should have known..." he muttered.

"Trek, I presume?" Samus said in a business-like fashion. Trek flipped another card and cursed.

"Indeed..." he said coldly, studying the card he had drawn. The Eternal Blade was right side up, symbolizing conflict. He flipped the last card and scowled. "What business do you have with me, Miss Aran?" he said dismissively.

"I think you know. You just don't know how much I know." Samus replied. Trek smirked.

"Then illuminate me on what you think you know." Trek retorted calmly. Samus watched him carefully, then aimed her arm cannon at him.

"You started this war, and have aided in several murders, including Weavel, Kanden, Spire, and the Federation Admiral." Samus replied emotionlessly. "You are under arrest."

"Oh? And you think I will go peacefully? I do not deny those charges, but you have no authority over me." Trek said quietly, withdrawing Servu's Imperialist, which he had retrieved earlier, although no one had noticed. He fired, silently cursing his unfamilarity with the weapon. The red beam missed by several inches and Samus glanced at him curiously before firing a missile. Trek sidestepped quickly, once more glancing at the third card he had drawn. The Victory card was upside down. He could not win this duel. He was destined to lose to Samus, at least in this situation.

"You seem rather clumsy with that weapon." Samus said indifferently, firing another missile. Trek dove aside, firing the Imperialist again. Samus dodged easily, switching her weapon to the Battlehammer, firing rapid bursts of green energy in Trek direction. Trek flipped a card and winced. The Eternal Shield was upside down. This symbolized that defense was worthless. The energy exploded all around him, knocking him to the ground. He scowled angrily, getting back up quickly. A true warrior never stayed down. He fired his Imperialist again, but Samus evaded it easily, firing bursts of magma. Trek scowled, leaping over the fiery rounds, kicking Samus to the ground, but she recovered miraculously quickly, punching him in the face. He hit the ground, flipping the top tarot card.

"Figures...Retaliation, right side up." he muttered darkly. "Perhaps I didn't calculate all the factors this time..." he said to himself, firing the Imperialist. It was as inaccurate as all the other shots and he threw the weapon aside with frustration.

"You're the only kriken I know who can't use the Imperialist." Samus said coldly, firing a beam of neutrinos. The Shock Coil. Trek acted instinctively and withdrew his energy blade, grinning as the blade pulsed with red energy, neutralizing the flow of neutrinos. Samus, seeing the futility of the attack, swapped weapons to the Judicator, firing at an angle with the wall, bypassing Trek's sword and hitting the yellow kriken.

"Damn it..." Trek snapped in annoyance, spinning the blade in one hand. While Samus admitted he appeared to be skilled with a sword, she would still find a way to beat him. She fired another Judicator, but Trek seemed to catch on to the technique and moved out of the way of the rebounding bolt, advancing carefully, blade spinning. Samus fired the Battlehammer directly at the sword, and Trek gasped in surprise, the explosions knocking the blade from his hand. He flipped the top tarot card and winced. "The Unexpected..." he muttered, backing away slowly, moving closer towards his fallen sword. Samus fired the Shock Coil again, but Trek dove backwards, out of range of the locking effect of the neutrinos, seizing his fallen sword.

"You won't escape justice." Samus said seriously, even as Trek stood up, eye alight with malice. "You must face judgment for your crimes." Samus said. Trek flipped a card and smirked.

"You speak of justice like a force capable of overcoming destiny. You speak of judgment as if it is fair. The universe is unfair and corrupt. The Balance card symbolizes such a paradox. It is upside down, and to date has never been right side up. It symbolizes that there are forces at work of both good and evil. The battle between them can never end, and your efforts do nothing more than cause more pain." Trek said solemnly.

"Neither do yours. My efforts are to help the innocent, while your efforts are to help yourself." Samus retorted, making Trek wonder briefly how much she knew. Perhaps she somehow had communication within the station, allowing her to hear about his deeds. He didn't really care that much.

"Destiny is on my side, but this duel is on yours. I cannot defeat the Hero card yet. However, even at a loss, I can overcome destiny and defeat you. The Federation will truly fall then." Trek said calmly. "Then all those lives would have been lost in vain. You're the last pillar of strength for them, and your failure will destroy them." Trek sneered. Samus fired her Imperialist, forcing Trek to dive to the side to avoid the deadly beam.

"Allowing a monster like yourself to live would be the true failure. I regret being forced to kill, but if I don't, many more will die because of you." Samus said solemnly. Trek chuckled, flipping two cards.

"I have all I need, Miss Aran. The Endgame approaches, and when it arrives, my destiny shall be clear once more." Trek replied, leaping into the air. Samus fired missiles at him, but he twisted in midair, dodging the shots. He spun his red blade quickly, and sparks flew everywhere as the blade sliced through the portion of the pole that was attached to the ceiling. Trek landed gracefully and spun in a circle, the blade slicing through the lower portion as well, the metal pole falling free and forcing Samus to leap backwards to avoid being crushed. "Farewell, Miss Aran!" Trek sneered and she heard the door on the other side of the pole open and shut.

"Damn!" she cursed, realizing she couldn't catch him in time. Just then, the door opposite the one she had come from opened and Trace and Drek burst in, looking around in confusion.

"What happened?" Trace said, staring at the wrecked pole.

"That yellow kriken cut it down to escape from me." Samus said. Drek cursed.

"It's ironic really. The traitor to the Empire gets the ultimate honor." Trace said sarcastically. Drek nodded. The pole was unmovable without a great deal of power. Noxus entered the room and groaned.

"He got away, didn't he? I will get him for what he's done..." Noxus said, activating the energy flow of two energy blades, using them to carve away portions of the large pole, enabling them to pass through. "How did you know we were here anyway?" he asked Samus.

"You still had your communication unit on. I could hear that you went to investigate the station, and I overheard small portions of your conversation with that evil kriken. I established that his name was Trek, and he killed Weavel, Kanden, Spire, and arranged all the deaths in this war." Samus replied as Trace and Drek ran through the door Trek had taken. Noxus nodded.

"We might as well lend a hand. I think they forgot that they have no weapons." Noxus said, gesturing at the door the krikens had taken. Samus nodded and followed Noxus through the doorway.

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Trek chuckled as he took the elevator upwards. His escape had come on a sudden inspiration. The two cards he picked were Distraction and Destruction, a common combination. He shuffled his tarot deck and placed the deck back on his utility belt, which still blended perfectly with his yellow body. He walked into his office area and then blinked in shock. Sylux stood in the room, arms crossed, looking very aggravated.

"You used me." Sylux said coldly and Trek chuckled.

"Obviously. You think I'd do anything else? You're so easy to manipulate, Sylux. Promise you the ability to defeat the Federation, but in reality, you never needed anything special to beat them! By tricking you, I managed to destroy the Space Pirates as well. It was all for one purpose, to keep you alive long enough to take advantage of your death!" Trek replied. Sylux lunged forward, but Trek blocked his punches before delivering a hard kick to his gut, following through with an uppercut. Sylux slammed against the table, shattering it from the impact.

"I'll kill you before you kill me!" Sylux snarled furiously, firing his Shock Coil. Trek activated the red blade of his energy sword, neutralizing the stream of neutrinos.

"You will never learn." Trek whispered, darting forward and bringing the blade down upon Sylux, who flipped into Lockjaw, attempting to place a triangle of bombs around Trek, who calmly jumped away from the trap, landing near the window behind the ruined table. Sylux returned to biped, scowling slightly. "Now let the Endgame begin! Your fate is mine!" Trek laughed maliciously.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	23. Endgame part 1

Sylux fired his Shock Coil a the yellow kriken, who calmly moved his sword in the path of the neutrinos, neutralizing the attack. Sylux, rather than give up the attack, continued firing. Trek's eye narrowed suspiciously, and Sylux grinned to himself. The longer the Shock Coil was locked, the stronger the Shock Coil's power became, slowly increasing in power.

"Clever...but not good enough." Trek said softly, now using both hands to steady his sword, which was being struck with stronger energy. "Observe..." Trek added, spinning his sword quickly, the Shock Coil lock broken. Trek darted forward, bringing his blade down upon Sylux, who sidestepped and punched, but Trek blocked the blow, kicking Sylux, knocking the hunter into the wall. Sylux recovered quickly and fired the Shock Coil again. Trek hastily glanced at one of the tarot cards and nodded, preferring to avoid the Coil rather than block it.

"You will die." Sylux sneered angrily and Trek smirked.

"Your Distraction will not assist you in this fight. Your end is near!" Trek replied, swinging his sword gracefully, but Sylux ducked. Trek took immediate advantage of the position and did a flip over Sylux, then kicked him with great force, propelling the hunter through the window, where he landed on one of the metal ledges. Sylux got up, briefly surprised by the change of location. Trek spun his blade and leapt out the window as well, landing a few feet away from Sylux.

"Interesting twist. How's this one?" Sylux asked, withdrawing a Space Pirate energy blade from his suit's utility belt and activating the energy flow. Trek's eye widened in shock. Sylux's blade wasnt yellow or red, but a vibrant blue-green, almost matching his suit's color.

"Interesting...I've never seen that color, although I probably can guess the energy it's formed from." Trek said quietly, swinging his sword quickly, but Sylux blocked and shoved Trek backwards, keeping the yellow kriken slightly off balance before pressing the offensive, Trek blocking the blows, but staggering from the force of the blows combined with being off balance constantly.

"So much for your talk!" Sylux sneered, blocking one of Trek's counterattacks and shoving on the blade forcefully, pushing Trek off the ledge they were battling on, but Trek landed on a thin platform, taking a moment to analyze the situation. The new platform was very thin, and it curved around the station to other, larger platforms. They were near the top of the station, and there were platforms below, but nothing directly beneath them.

"That was an error to the builder. A thin platform suspended over the abyss." Trek muttered, backing away slowly as Sylux approached, hopping onto the rail-like platform, balancing carefully. Trek smirked and leapt over Sylux, aided by the reduced gravity field, swinging his sword at the peak of his leap, but Sylux ducked, spinning around to face Trek as he landed, blocking another attack by the yellow kriken. "You are better at swordplay than most opponents, Sylux. Why is that?" Trek asked coldly.

"I practiced in many fighting arts. Unarmed, sword, gun, sniping and many more." Sylux replied coldly. Trek got the hint that Sylux had a bad past, and the thoughts associated with his training reminded him of whatever events sparked his hatred of the Federation. Trek didn't really care, though. The past is unfixable, the future is the changeable. Sylux slashed his sword at Trek, who blocked, grunting slightly from the sheer power Sylux was employing.

"Your emotions aren't enough to overcome destiny, or my skill!" Trek said calmly, kicking Sylux in the gut. He honestly was starting to wonder why no one figured out how to counter it by now. Sylux hunched over and Trek swung his sword downwards for the killing stroke, but Sylux flipped into Lockjaw and moved off the platform. "What in the name of destiny is he doing?" Trek muttered, then clenched his jaw. Sylux had begun laying his tripwie bombs rapid, the propulsions from the explosions literally allowing him to fly. Sylux landed on the opposite end of the rail platform and he returned to biped.

"Haha, got to love the low gravity." Sylux said gloatingly. Trek smiled and glanced at another card.

"We shall see if it helps you at all, Sylux. Your strength has a weakness, and I can exploit it easily." Trek said softly. He walked calmly across the narrow rail, spinning his sword in one claw. Sylux prepared to counterattack, advancing on Trek as well. They met at the middle and Sylux struck first, a wide arc to the side, and Trek flipped over Sylux, taking advantage of Sylux's awkward arc and jabbing as he descended. Sylux managed to pivot in time, blocking the jab and punching with his other fist, hitting Trek. Luckily for Trek, he managed to grab the rail to prevent his fall to certain doom. Sylux brought his blade downwards, aiming to cut off one of Trek's hands, but the yellow kriken released the rail with the targeted claw, now dangling with his sword hand.

"That makes it easier, I suppose." Sylux said, repositioning his sword to cut off Trek's right arm.

"Nice try, but I'm better than that!" Trek mocked, swinging his weight to the side and releasing the rail. Sylux's sword sliced through the rail where Trek had been clinging moments before, and Sylux had unwittingly been standing on the rail in between the two cuts he had made, falling through the gap he created. However, he once more used his Lockjaw maneuver to return to the platform. Trek had pulled himself back onto a less narrow ledge and smirked, spinning his sword. Sylux scowled. "What's wrong, you think you had me beat, Sylux?" Trek sneered.

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Noxus and Samus reached an elevator and ascended up a floor, looking around in concern. "Let's try over there..." Samus suggested, pointing towards a door. Upon going through, Noxus gasped slightly. Trace and Drek were also in the room, looking around in confusion. They had probably also just arrived, perhaps by taking a wrong turn somewhere. This station had so many doors around, it was almost impossible to not get lost. Samus made a strange sound and Noxus turned to see what she was looking at. He growled in anger as he saw the slumped body of a high ranking human officer, most likely the Federation Admiral.

"Killed by an Imperialist though..." Drek said indifferently. Noxus looked confused.

"What does that mean?" he asked. Drek sighed.

"Trek's skill is only in swordfighting. He couldn't use an Imperialist if his life depended on it. Kanden over here, on the other hand, was killed by an energy blade." Trace explained, pointing to the body of the mutated hunter. "Same technique as Spire, a jab in the chest." he added.

"What happened here, though?" Drek asked, gesturing to the ruins of a table and a broken window. Samus cautiously looked out the window.

"There's actually areas to stand safely out there, but I dont think there was any maintenance to be done." Noxus said thoughtfully.

"Over there...can it be?" Trace yelled out suddenly and they looked where he was pointing. A fair distance away, a red beam of light could be seen, sparks flying as it hit a beam of greenish blue light. By the light of the two beams, the identity of the participants of the battle could be seen. "It is Sylux..." Trace said after a moment.

"Why is he fighting Trek?" Noxus murmured. "And where did he get that sword? Trek only has yellow blades other than his personal red."

"Why he's fighting is unimportant. The real question is...can he win?" Samus said seriously.

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Trek blocked another blow by Sylux, grinning wickedly. It was rare that he ever got a challenge on a 1 on 1 duel, and Sylux was fighting better than even Drek had. "You're not as tough as I'd like, but you're definitely more amusing than previous opponents." Trek hissed, spinning his blade, almost wrenching Sylux's blade away, but Sylux managed to get out of the trap just in time. Trek chuckled, amused by the close save. He swung his sword and Sylux blocked, sparks flying from the force of the impact.

"Playtime is over. This is vengeance!" Sylux snarled, slamming his sword against Trek's sword, the force of the blow causing Trek to stumble backwards slightly. Sylux mimicked Trek's spinning trick, successfully wrenching Trek's sword away, but at the same time, dropping his own. Sylux dove to retrieve his fallen weapon, while Trek's flew overhead and plummeted over the edge of the platform.

"No!" Trek said, running to the edge of the platform, watching the red blade fall towards the endless abyss, but it landed on a small ledge far below, only inches from falling into the abyss. He scowled briefly. He no longer had his weapon, but Sylux still had his. He glanced at the top tarot card and rolled his eye. "The Unexpected...it can symbolize a turn of events unseen before." Trek muttered. He turned back to Sylux, who had regained his sword and composure.

"It's all over, you manipulating bastard..." Sylux hissed, swinging his blade but Trek ducked, kicking Sylux's leg and knocking the hunter off balance. Trek continued his unarmed attack by punching Sylux in the face, the helmet protecting its wearer to an extent. Sylux swung his sword desperately and Trek cried out as the blade grazed his shoulder. He jerked back and Sylux pressed his new advantage, swinging like a deranged lunatic. Trek paused to grin at the appropriate mental image.

"Just try to stop me! My goal is to escape, yours is to kill me. If the opportunity arises, I'll kill you." Trek sneered, backing slowly towards the edge of the platform, ignoring the small twinge in his wounded shoulder. Sylux advanced, glaring at Trek with rage. Trek grinned widely and leapt off the platform they were on, Sylux staring in shock. The closest platform was at least 50 feet down! He rushed over to the edge of the platform, watching the yellow kriken plummet towards the abyss.

"Fall you damn kriken. Fall to your death!" Sylux muttered darkly, knowing that Trek had some plan in mind. Sure enough, about 30 feet below, Trek caught hold of a small bar protruding from the station, stopping his descent. "Damn, guess I'll have to follow." Sylux scowled, spinning his sword before leaping after Trek, using his Lockjaw bombs to descend slowly. He landed on a small ledge about 20 feet away from where Trek was clinging, the yellow kriken glancing at him dismissively as he pulled himself onto the bar he was clinging onto.

"Ready? Let's finish this Sylux!" Trek mocked.

"I still have a sword, you don't." Sylux sneered and Trek grinned, pointing downwards to a platform still further down. Sylux groaned to himself as he saw the red glow of the energy blade.

"The end is near, Sylux. All I need to do is recover the sword and your fate is sealed!" Trek said.

TO BE CONTINUED...


	24. Endgame part 2

Trek grinned confidently as Sylux scowled. "What's wrong? Afraid that even after all that effort, that you're still nothing more than a pawn? Well you're right, because destiny controls it all! And the one who controls destiny controls everything." Trek mocked. Sylux gripped his sword in anger. "Just try to stop me...you'll see how futile fighting destiny really is!"

"Bring it on, then!" Sylux snarled. Trek chuckled and glanced at one of his tarot cards. Sylux's eyes narrowed. Those cards seemed to be Trek's entire strategy. He always was checking them...so keep him from checking them, and the advantage is gone. That's why Trek had messed up so many times already. Sylux lunged forward, using the low gravity to leap into the air, propelling him to the bar Trek stood on, swinging the blade as he descended. Trek chuckled and hopped off the bar, watching as Sylux's momentum nearly caused the hunter to fall.

"You'll have to be faster to get me this time." Trek said calmly, dropping off the platform he stood on, landing only a few platforms away from the fallen sword. Sylux growled slightly, leaping after the yellow kriken. Trek sidestepped a slash and punched Sylux's arm, before slamming his foot into Sylux's gut, following with an uppercut. Sylux staggered backwards, now in danger of falling into the abyss below. Trek smirked and leapt off the ledge, landing on a ledge beneath. His red blade glowed eeriely a few platforms below, his cloak billowing behind him.

"You're as good as dead!" Sylux snarled, leaping down from the platform, landing in front of Trek and swinging the sword. Trek did a backflip, kicking off part of the station's exterior and using his new momentum to collide with Sylux, sending the hunter off the platform onto a different one a few feet below. Sylux fired his Shock Coil at Trek, who dodged easily, leaping down upon Sylux and kicking him off the platform. Sylux landed, rolling back to his feet and grinning. Trek landed a few feet away.

"Your move, Sylux. Show me what you've got!" Trek sneered. Sylux ran forward, swinging the sword quickly, but Trek rolled under Sylux's arm, standing up behind the hunter, who whirled around, scowling. "Bit slow, aren't you?" Trek mocked, ducking another slash.

"This is only the beginning!" Sylux retorted, aggravated. Trek flipped backwards over a low slash, landing on an even lower platform. Sylux followed, bringing his sword down upon the yellow kriken, who caught Sylux's wrist, stopping the sword's descent. Sylux stared in surprise, focusing on overcoming Trek's grasp.

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Noxus, Samus, Drek, and Trace stepped out of the shattered window when they saw Trek leap off the station ledge. "What was he doing?" Trace muttered, looking over the edge of the platform they stood on.

"He survived, obviously." Drek said, pointing to the platforms below, where Sylux and Trek were still battling. "But why take the fight lower? More likely to fall..." Drek mused.

"Over there." Noxus said, pointing to one of the lowest platforms, where he could make out a red glow. "He's trying to recover his energy blade." he said, scowling. The others nodded grimly.

"If he gets it back, he'll win for sure." Trace said in disappointment. "Unless Sylux stops him from doing so."

"That's what we have to hope for." Drek said coldly.

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Trek smiled calmly as Sylux winced, still trying to break Trek's grasp. "You've lost, Sylux. Game over." Trek said, pulling Sylux to his knees before kicking him in the head, Sylux's energy blade fell from his grasp, over the edge of the platform. Sylux stared after it, even as Trek released his wrist. The blue-green blade plummeted into the dark abyss before finally fading from view.

"Do you have any idea how much that cost?" Sylux snarled. Trek chuckled.

"Does it matter? You'll soon be dead, and money is meaningless to you then." Trek replied. Sylux fired his Shock Coil, but Trek flipped a tarot card quickly before jumping backwards, narrowly dodging the stream of neutrinos. Sylux glared at Trek, stumbling back to his feet. Trek turned towards the platform below, where his red energy blade lay. Sylux lunged at the yellow kriken, who did a backflip over him, startling Sylux slightly as something impacted with him painlessly.

"What the hell was that?" Sylux demanded, confused. Trek chuckled.

"You might recall the technology, Sylux. It's called an Alt-Disabling missile. While it inflicts no great damage to the target, they cannot use their alternate forms for several hours. Thus, you are unable to do anymore escapes!" Trek explained, kicking the hunter off the platform, but Sylux grabbed the edge as Trek walked towards the ledge where his sword lay. Snarling with rage, Sylux pulled himself up and leapt as high as he could, ultimately jumping over Trek, who watched the jump with amusement. Sylux laughed coldly as he landed on the platform with Trek's sword.

"Come and get it then!" Sylux mocked. Trek ignored the comment, calmly jumping the small series of platforms leading to the one where Sylux and his energy blade were, which was a very small platform. "Too slow, kriken, too slow!" Sylux said when Trek was one platform away, and kicked the handle of the sword, sending it plummeting into the abyss. There was a small metallic clang as it bounced against the lowest point of the station, before vanishing from view. Trek examined the top card and nodded.

"You honestly believe I care?" Trek said and Sylux paused his laughing, puzzled. "I could have retrieved the sword long ago. You fell into the trap, just as you were destined to." Trek continued, slamming his claw into Sylux's chest, the impact nearly knocking Sylux off the platform. Sylux began to panic slightly, trying desperately to cling onto a ledge or bar of some sort. Trek chuckled as Sylux finally lost his balance and fell into the darkness of the abyss.

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"Just our luck." Trace said bitterly as he saw Sylux fall. There was a strange humming noise and a small spacecraft appeared from somewhere inside the station, and Trace's eye widened. "Is that...?"

"Yes. The Original Kriken Force I...my bet is that Trek owns it. Servu owned the Kriken Force II, and I got the Kriken Force III." Drek said immediately. Trace nodded, watching as the ship flew towards the yellow kriken below them, who boarded.

"He's getting away!" Noxus snarled furiously. Samus stopped him from jumping off the platform in pursuit.

"He won't get far." Samus explained firing a weapon at the ship. It was a sure hit and she nodded.

"Tracer?" Drek asked. Samus nodded in reply.

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Sylux fell, still struggling to grip some sort of bar. He couldnt lose yet...he just couldnt. As luck would have it, he managed to catch hold of some sort of strange machine attached to the station. After assuring that it was secure, he tapped a button on his wrist signalling the Delano 8. He grunted, clinging to random parts of a space station wasnt as simple as it should be. If his Lockjaw wasnt disabled, he'd be able to move around easily. Where did that creep get an Alt-Disabling Missile, anyway?

"Damn kriken!" Sylux snarled to no one in particular, smiling slightly as he saw the silhouette of his ship approaching. It didnt take long for him to get aboard and he quickly scanned the area for other spacecrafts before managing to lock onto the Kriken Force I. "Excellent. Let's give that bastard a taste of this power!" he snickered.

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Trek was still smirking as he settled himself quickly on his ship. He studied a few more tarot cards before nodding to himself. "The Endgame card still hasnt appeared, so this isnt over yet. The Eternal Blade symbolizes the continuation of conflict, which should have been resolved with Sylux's death, so he's still alive." Trek said to himself, glancing at the radar screen. Sure enough, there was an approaching ship. Suddenly, several powerful plasma bursts rocked the ship. Trek chuckled. The Delano 8 was approaching rapidly.

"Let's see what is destined..." Trek whispered, shuffling the deck calmly. There was another small explosion and two cards slipped from Trek's hand as he was shuffling. His eye narrowed in interest and glanced at them. "Is that so? Then if it is destined, so be it." Trek said, closing his eye in acceptance. He pressed a quick command into the computer and his ship's systems shut off.

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"Wait...what's going on?" Noxus yelled suddenly, pointing. Samus, Trace, and Drek turned and saw the Delano 8 attack the Kriken Force I.

"He survived?" Trace whispered in surprise. Then everyone stared blankly. The Kriken Force I shut its systems off, just as the Delano 8 fired a missile.

"Oh crap..." Drek muttered. The Delano 8 kept moving, while the Kriken Force I stopped. Therefore, the Delano 8's missile struck the ship sooner than expected, leaving both ships in the blast radius. A massive explosion tore through the Kriken Force I, also engulfing the Delano 8. The flash was so bright, everyone averted their eyes for a moment. When the light dimmed, there was no sign of either ship, except for a few random pieces of debris.

"Took them both out...do you think that was planned?" Noxus asked, stunned.

**One chapter to go. Then this story is over.**


	25. Aftermath

**Ok, the final chapter has finally arrived!**

Trace, Drek, Samus, and Noxus stared at the space where the Delano 8 and Kriken Force I had been moments before, still stunned by the abrupt events. Drek shrugged, mostly indifferent. Trace scowled slightly. Trek was gone at last, but he had betrayed the Empire and seized the ultimate honor. Perhaps the worst thing was that a kriken hadnt avenged the Empire.

"The war's over now." Samus said simply. "The Federation withdraws, the pirates are down, and the Empire withdrew. Trek started the war, so it's appropriate that it ends with his demise." she said.

"Trace, we have to figure out a way to restore the Empire." Drek said quietly. Trace looked at him curiously.

"Do you intend to take the throne?" he asked skeptically. Drek shook his head.

"No. Politics is not my game. I want to figure out what damage has been done and the best way to repair it." Drek replied. The kriken brothers turned and re-entered the station, leaving for their ships. Samus glanced after them and she and Noxus both re-entered the station.

"I just get the feeling that I failed already. I promised to avenge the ones who fell in the war, but I wasnt the one who did it." Noxus said quietly. Samus stared at him a moment.

"Revenge isnt the path to take, Noxus. You cant avenge someone by killing more people. It's wrong. That's why you track the evildoers, to bring them to justice, not to kill them." Samus said softly. Noxus nodded thoughtfully.

"It was a mistake to ever get involved." Noxus said, clenching his fists.

"I didnt want to get involved either. However, you didnt do any of the real fighting, so you lucked out. Spire was a friend to me also." she replied, with a hint of sadness in her voice. "All we can do now is remember him, and move on with our lives." she said sadly. Noxus glanced back out the window of the station, then around the room at the bodies of Kanden and the Federation Admiral.

"How can one individual help cause so much damage, so many deaths?" Noxus asked himself.

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Drek and Trace arrived at the current Kriken Empire capital. They had spent most of the day traveling here. Now that the war had ended, almost every kriken in the Empire of any importance was summoned to the capital. It was hopefully nothing more than a formality, but Drek knew the hope was useless. It was to attempt to select a new Emperor, a long and irritating series of meetings and formal trials and other political ordeals that Drek never cared for. It has annoying enough when he was given the title of Battlelord.

"Why did we even come here?" Trace asked a few hours later, clearly as bored as Drek was, although Drek had to admit that Trace hid that emotion well. Undoubtedly better than Drek did, anyway.

"We came because it's the only way we can return to the Empire formally. Unfortunately, it also means several fruitless hours where other krikens say 'Make me Emperor' and no one votes for him because anyone who has nothing to say but 'vote for me' is obviously not a good leader." Drek said. "Same thing with Student Council in the training camp. I heard other species actually DO vote for people who just say 'vote for me'. Usually, we take those species down immediatey afterwards." Drek said, grinning slightly.

"So how long do you expect this to go on?" Trace asked, smirking. Drek considered this a moment.

"Let's see...a month until we get the new Emperor. Less if we get lucky. Thankfully, we dont have to attend more than this session, unless one of us gets nominated and we accept. I'm not accepting. I predict another 3-10 hours." Drek replied. Trace nodded and sighed. He now understood why his brother hated politics.

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In the middle of a small wasteland, a solitary figure crawled from the inside of a small capsule. The figure's eye opened slowly, gleaming red. The figure stood, pushing back the hood of a tattered cloak, revealing his yellow insect-like body. Trek chuckled malevolently.

"Hahaha...it all comes clear at last. The advantage of Sylux's death is that everyone thinks I died as well! Destiny rewards those who are faithful to its cause. My faith in destiny saved me, and killed my attacker at the same time!" Trek laughed, studying the two cards that had led him here. "Destruction and Endgame! Symbolizing the only way to finish this was to allow the ship to be destroyed! I had forgotten all about the emergency escape pod...destiny sees everything!" Trek continued, looking around the wasteland.

"I know this planet well, and soon I will return to civilization and begin anew." Trek said to himself, flipping a card. "The Hero, right side up...symbolizing Samus Aran. The second card is Balance, upside down. Of course, the world is still imbalanced. Finally...the third card is Eternal Blade, right side up. As long as there is conflict, the world can never be balanced. I will find the answer to this puzzle and finish the job I began!" Trek announced loudly. His cloak billowed behind him from the gentle wind as he slowly walked towards the city in the distance.

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**Ok, hope you all enjoyed the story. Haha, evil twist. As far as the 5th and (probably) final of my MPH fics...it wont be written for a while, because I plan to write other fics first. I dont like too many projects open at once.**


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